There is substantial evidence that inequalities in income and wealth have increased in the last few decades but little about changes in disparities in health, as captured by indicators such as life expectancy. Combining data on politicians’ dates of birth, death and election with life table data, this study examines the comparative life expectancy of 57,561 politicians for 11 countries (with follow-up ranging from 1816-2016 for France to 1949-2017 for Germany). Our results indicate that the survival advantage of politicians, compared to the general populations they represent, widened considerably over the 20th century. At their peak, life expectancy gaps ranged from 4.4 (95% CI 3.5-5.4) years in the Netherlands to 7.8 (95% CI 7.2-8.4) years in the United States. In the majority of countries (Australia, Austria, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, New Zealand and the US), relative mortality differences are now at their highest observed level.