All eyes are on US President Donald Trump as the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize announcement is scheduled for Friday. Trump has long made it clear that he wants the world’s most coveted peace honour.
The Nobel Committee said that there are 338 candidates for this year’s Peace Prize, including 244 persons and 94 organisations. The number of nominees has seen an uptick from last year’s 286 nominations. While the committee never publicly confirms nominees, some prominent names have been making the rounds on the internet because of speculation and self-declared nominations. Here are some of the candidates who have been reportedly nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize this year.
US President Donald Trump
Trump’s campaign for the Nobel Peace Prize has been loud and persistent, with the US President constantly using every platform available to explain why he “deserves” the honour. He has been nominated for the Nobel Prize several times by both people in the US and leaders abroad. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Pakistan’s army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet are among those who nominated the US president to the award committee in Norway.
In the US, Congressman Buddy Carter also nominated Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize “in recognition of his historic role in brokering a ceasefire between Israel and Iran.”
It is important to note that the nominations made by Israeli PM Netanyahu and Pakistan’s government came after the February 1 deadline for the 2025 award.
Speaking to military officials at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia last month, Trump said, “Nobody’s ever done that. Will you get the Nobel Prize? Absolutely not. They’ll give it to some guy that didn’t do a damn thing.”
Pope Francis
Pope Francis, who died in April, was nominated earlier this year. But the award has never been given posthumously. Norway’s Dag Inge Ulstein of the Christian Democratic Party had nominated the late Pope for “his unstoppable contribution to promoting binding and comprehensive peace and fraternity between people, people groups and states.” The Pope was also previously nominated in 2022 for his efforts on peace, reconciliation, and climate advocacy.
Imran Khan
Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, currently in jail, has been nominated by members of the Pakistan World Alliance (PWA) and the Norwegian political party Partiet Sentrum.
In a post on X, Partiet Sentrum said, “We are pleased to announce on behalf of Partiet Sentrum that in alliance with somebody with the right to nominate, we have nominated Imran Khan, the former prime minister of Pakistan, to the Nobel Peace Prize for his work with human rights and democracy in Pakistan.” Khan was also nominated in 2019 for his efforts to promote peace in South Asia.
Elon Musk
Billionaire Elon Musk has also been nominated for his advocacy of free speech. Branko Grims, a European Parliament member from Slovenia, said a petition for Musk’s nomination had been submitted to the Nobel Committee, for his defence of “the fundamental human right of freedom of speech and peace.”
Grims also shared a screenshot of the confirmation email from the committee on X, which read, “Your nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize 2025 has been successfully submitted.”
“The proposal that Mr. Elon Musk, for his consistent support for the fundamental human right of freedom of speech and thus for peace, receives the Nobel Peace Prize 2025, was successfully submitted today,” he added.
Anwar Ibrahim
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has also been nominated by Prof Dr Datuk Osman Bakar and Prof Dr Phar Kim Beng for “his commitment to dialogue, regional harmony, and peace through non-coercive diplomacy.” They also highlighted his “timely role in the Thailand–Cambodia ceasefire.”
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