Donald Trump's Cabinet, 2025
(second term) Donald Trump • J.D. Vance  |
| Administration: Donald Trump's Cabinet • Confirmation process for Cabinet nominees |
| Transition: Transition • Certification of electoral votes • 2024 presidential election |
| 2024 election: Presidential election • Presidential candidates |
| 2028 election: Presidential election • Presidential candidates |
Prior to taking office on January 20, 2025, Donald Trump (R) will identify candidates for the positions that comprise the president's Cabinet. This tradition is rooted in Article II, Section 2, Clause 1 of the Constitution, which states that the president "may require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties of their respective Offices."[1]
A presidential Cabinet is a group of senior federal officials who advise the president on the issues and activities of their respective agencies. The number of officials in a Cabinet can vary across presidential administrations. While not explicitly identified in the Constitution, the Cabinet secretaries are the 15 agency heads who are in the presidential line of succession. The vice president is also part of the Cabinet.
During Trump's first term, the following offices were also Cabinet-rank positions: White House chief of staff, the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, the U.S. trade representative, the director of the Central Intelligence Agency, the director of National Intelligence, the administrator of the Small Business Administration, and the ambassador to the United Nations during Nikki Haley's tenure in the position.[2] Joe Biden (D) additionally included the chair of the Council of Economic Advisers and the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy in his Cabinet.
Except for the vice president and White House chief of staff, these positions require Senate confirmation. Between November 7 and December 4, 2024, Trump announced nominees for all 22 of the Senate-confirmed Cabinet and Cabinet-level positions in his second term.
This page provides an overview of individuals appointed to Trump's Cabinet.
Recent hearings, votes, and nominations
The section below displays recent hearings, votes, and nominations related to Trump's Cabinet. Click here to view previous events.
- December 4, 2024: Trump announced he would nominate former U.S. Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.) as administrator of the Small Business Administration.[3]
- November 26, 2024: Trump announced he would nominate Jamieson Greer as U.S. trade representative.[4]
- November 23, 2024: Trump announced he would nominate Brooke Rollins for secretary of Agriculture.[5]
Cabinet and Cabinet-level appointees
- See also: Confirmation process for Donald Trump's Cabinet nominees, 2025, Donald Trump presidential transition (2024-2025), Confirmation process overview for Donald Trump's Cabinet nominees (2016-2017), and Donald Trump presidential Cabinet (2017-2021)
The following table shows the names of individuals announced as appointees for Cabinet and Cabinet-rank positions, along with the status of their nomination, where applicable. This list of positions is based on the Cabinet-level positions at the start of Trump's first term in 2017.
| Donald Trump's Cabinet (2025) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Photo | Officeholder | Status |
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Vice President (pending) J.D. Vance |
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White House Chief of Staff (announced) Susie Wiles |
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Ambassador to the United Nations (announced) Elise Stefanik |
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Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (announced) Lee Zeldin |
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Secretary of Defense (announced) Pete Hegseth |
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Secretary of Homeland Security (announced) Kristi Noem |
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Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (announced) John Ratcliffe |
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Secretary of State (announced) Marco Rubio |
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Director of National Intelligence (announced) Tulsi Gabbard |
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Secretary of Health and Human Services (announced) Robert F. Kennedy Jr. |
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Secretary of Veterans Affairs (announced) Doug Collins |
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Secretary of the Interior (announced) Doug Burgum |
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| Secretary of Energy (announced) Chris Wright |
| |
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Secretary of Transportation (announced) Sean Duffy |
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Secretary of Commerce (announced) Howard Lutnick |
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Secretary of Education (announced) Linda McMahon |
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Attorney General (announced) Pam Bondi |
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Secretary of the Treasury (announced) Scott Bessent |
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Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (announced) Scott Turner |
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Secretary of Labor (announced) Lori Chavez-DeRemer |
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Director of the Office of Management and Budget (announced) Russell Vought |
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Secretary of Agriculture (announced) Brooke Rollins |
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U.S. Trade Representative (announced) Jamieson Greer |
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Administrator of the Small Business Administration (announced) Kelly Loeffler |
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Withdrawn nominees
The table below displays nominees who withdrew from consideration.
| Donald Trump's withdrawn Cabinet nominees (2024-2025) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Photo | Officeholder | Status |
 |
Attorney General Matt Gaetz |
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Historical comparison of Cabinet confirmations
Comparison to Biden administration
The following chart displays how many days it took for the Cabinet secretaries of President Joe Biden (D) to be confirmed after the inauguration in 2021. This chart includes the main 15 Cabinet positions.
Comparison to Trump's first term
The following chart displays how many days it took for President Donald Trump's (R) first term Cabinet secretaries to be confirmed after the inauguration in 2017. This chart includes the main 15 Cabinet positions.
Comparison to Obama administration
The following chart displays how many days it took for the Cabinet secretaries of President Barack Obama (D) to be confirmed after the inauguration in 2009. This chart includes the main 15 Cabinet positions.
Historical comparison of Cabinet announcements
The following chart shows how long it took the projected winner of four recent presidential elections—Barack Obama (D) in 2008, Donald Trump (R) in 2016, Joe Biden (D) in 2020, and Donald Trump (R) in 2024—to announce their nominees for Cabinet and Cabinet-rank positions.
- White House chief of staff was the first position to be announced by all four with Obama and Trump ahead of his second term taking the shortest time (2 days after the election) and Biden the longest (8 days after the election).
- Trump had named all 23 Cabinet nominees as of December 4, 2024. At this point after election day, Biden had announced seven Cabinet-level positions in 2020, Trump had announced 13 in 2016, and Obama had announced nine in 2008. It took Trump 72 days to name all 23 of the nominees for these positions in 2016.
- Trump announced these nominees an average of 11.9 days after election day. Biden's average for the same positions was 39.6 days after election day, Trump's first term average for these positions was 30.9 days after election day, and Obama's average was 36.4 days after election day.
Appointment confirmation process overview
- See also: Appointment confirmation process
Nomination
- See also: Advice and Consent
The process begins when the president provides a written nomination to the Senate, where it is read on the floor and assigned a number.[6] This starts the Senate's procedure of "Advice and Consent" laid out in Article II of the U.S. Constitution for the appointment of high ranking officials by the president.[6]
Committee hearings
After the president submits a written nomination to the U.S. Senate, the nomination is passed to the Senate committee with jurisdiction over the appointed position. Some positions require a joint hearing of two or more committees. Committee hearings allow a close examination of the nominee, looking for partisanship and views on public policy. They can also summon supporters and opponents to testify. Committees are permitted to conduct their own investigations into the nominees.[6]
The following table outlines the jurisdiction of the Senate committees in terms of the presidential appointment confirmation process. The left column indicates the Senate committee, and the right indicates the federal departments and administrations over which the committee has jurisdiction.[6]
Click here to learn more about the appointment confirmation process.
| Jurisdiction of Senate committees in presidential appointment confirmation process | |
|---|---|
| Committee | Jurisdiction[7] |
| Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry | |
| Armed Services | |
| Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs |
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| Budget |
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| Commerce, Science, and Transportation |
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| Energy and Natural Resources | |
| Environment and Public Works |
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| Finance |
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| Foreign Relations |
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| Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions |
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| Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs |
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| Judiciary |
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| Rules and Administration |
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| Small Business and Entrepreneurship |
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| Veterans' Affairs |
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| Intelligence (Select) |
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Senate vote
The nomination must be on the Executive Calendar for more than one day before it can make it to the Senate floor for consideration.[6] Unanimous consent of the time and date for debate must be agreed upon by all senators.[8] If even one senator does not agree, a hold is placed on the nomination.[8]
Once the nomination is considered by the Senate, unlimited debate is allowed until a majority of the Senate votes to invoke cloture and close debate. Following a vote of cloture, the Senate conducts a simple majority vote on whether to confirm, reject, or take no action on the nomination.[9] If a nomination is left pending at the end of a Congress, it must be sent back to the president who can then re-submit the nomination to the new Congress.[6] The same procedure holds true with any nominee not considered before the Senate enters a recess of more than 30 days, unless there is unanimous consent to bypass the procedure.[8]
Presidential notification
Finally, the Senate's action on the nomination is sent to the president. All results are recorded in the Congressional Record.[6]
Recess appointments
A recess appointment is a temporary appointment made by the President of the United States to fill a vacant federal position while the United States Senate is in recess.
Article II, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution requires the president to seek the advice and consent of the U.S. Senate when appointing individuals to serve as federal judges, ambassadors, Cabinet secretaries, and other executive branch positions. Excluding federal judges, there are over 1,300 executive branch positions that require Senate confirmation.[10] However, the constitution also gives the president the power to, "fill up all Vacancies that may happen during the Recess of the Senate, by granting Commissions which shall expire at the End of their next Session."
The United States Supreme Court ruled in National Labor Relations Board v. Noel Canning Company (2014) that a president can make recess appointments during the recesses between formal Senate sessions (inter-session) and recesses that take place during formal Senate sessions (intra-session). The court also ruled that a president can only make recess appointments during a Senate recess that is at least ten days in length.[11] Article I, Section 5 of the U.S Constitution requires both the House and Senate must consent to adjourn in order for either chamber to hold a recess lasting more than three days.
Recess appointments are temporary, and last through the end of the Senate's next session unless the Senate votes to confirm the official and make the appointment permanent. So, for example, if a president makes an inter-session recess appointment, it would last about a year through the end of the upcoming session. If a president makes an intra-session recess appointment, it would last through the rest of the current session and through the end of the next session, meaning it could last as long as about two years.[12]
Ronald Reagan (R) made the most (240) recess appointments among presidents serving from 1981 to 2024, according to the Congressional Research Service.[13][12] During this time period, Donald Trump (R) and Joe Biden (D) made no recess appointments during this time period because the Senate was never in recess for ten consecutive days during either Trump's first term or Biden's term in office.[14]
See also
- Donald Trump presidential transition (2024-2025)
- Presidential election, 2024
- Appointment confirmation process
- Confirmation process overview for Donald Trump's Cabinet nominees (2017)
Footnotes
- ↑ Constitution Center, "Presidential Advisors," accessed November 18, 2020
- ↑ White House, "The Cabinet," accessed November 18, 2020
- ↑ 4President, "President Donald J. Trump Nominates Former U.S. Senator Kelly Loeffler, of Georgia, to serve as Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA)," December 4, 2024
- ↑ 4President, "President Donald J. Trump Nominates Jamieson Greer as United States Trade Representative (USTR)," November 26, 2024
- ↑ 4President, "President Donald J. Trump Nominates Brooke L. Rollins, of Texas, as the 33rd United States Secretary of Agriculture," November 23, 2024
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 CRS Report for Congress, "Senate Confirmation Process: An Overview," accessed July 24, 2013 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "crs" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ OpenCongress, "U.S. Senate Confirmation Process," accessed January 17, 2015
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Congressional Research Service, "Presidential Appointments, the Senate's Confirmation Process, and Proposals for Change," accessed July 25, 2013
- ↑ Congressional Research Service, "Senate Consideration of Presidential Nominations: Committee and Floor Procedure," April 4, 2019
- ↑ Partnership for Public Service, "Political Appointee Tracker," accessed November 15, 2024
- ↑ Supreme Court of the United States (via Findlaw), National Labor Relations Board v. Noel Canning, et al., decided June 26, 2014
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Congressional Research Service, "Recess Appointments: Frequently Asked Questions," March 11, 2015
- ↑ Congressional Research Service, "Recess Appointments: Frequently Asked Questions," March 15, 2005
- ↑ Congress.gov, "Browse by Congress," accessed November 15, 2024
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