Edith Windsor among 10 finalists for Time's Person of the Year

Time magazine on Dec. 9 announced the top 10 finalists for its person of the year for 2013. The person of the year, as chosen by editors will be announced early on Dec. 11. 

Edith Windsor, with the help of her attorneys and the American Civil Liberties Union, made the list. She is the widow who took her fight for marriage equality all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court this year and won, securing for same-sex couples in the United States marriage benefits at the federal level.

The victory also gave momentum to the campaign to dismantle anti-gay marriage laws across the country, including in the conservative South and Southwest.

The finalists include, in alphabetical order:

• Bashar Assad, President of Syria

• Jeff Bezos, Amazon Founder

• Ted Cruz, Texas Senator

• Miley Cyrus, Singer

• Pope Francis, Leader of the Catholic Church

• Barack Obama, President of the United States

• Hassan Rouhani, President of Iran

• Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services

• Edward Snowden, N.S.A. Leaker

• Edith Windsor, Gay rights activist

TIME managing editor Nancy Gibbs announced the group on the TODAY show Monday morning.

Time also has collected votes for readers' Person of the Year.