List of foreign-born United States Cabinet Secretaries

☆ Save On Wikipedia ↗
Henry Kissinger (left) and Madeleine Albright (right) are the highest-ranking foreign-born citizens to lead a federal executive department; each held the post of Secretary of State.

As of 2023, there have been 23 members appointed to the Cabinet of the United States who had been born outside the present-day United States.

Alexander Hamilton, one of the Founding Fathers who signed the U.S. Constitution, was the first cabinet member to be born outside of the United States.[1] President George Washington appointed Hamilton, born in Nevis in 1755 or in 1757, as the United States' first secretary of the treasury in 1789.[2][3] Irish-born James McHenry, whom Washington appointed as Secretary of War in 1796 and who served in the same post in John Adams's administration, was the other foreign-born individual in Washington's cabinet.[4]

Albert Gallatin, born in the Republic of Geneva (in present-day Switzerland) in 1761, became the third foreign-born member of the cabinet when named Secretary of the Treasury by President Thomas Jefferson in 1801.[5][6] Gallatin, his successor George W. Campbell, William J. Duane, Carl Schurz, and James Wilson were the only foreign-born members to hold cabinet positions in the 19th century. In the 20th century, nine foreign-born individuals were appointed to the cabinet, including German-born Oscar Straus and Mexican-born George Romney (George Romney, born to American parents, became the father of former governor of Massachusetts, 2012 Republican U.S. presidential candidate and former U.S. Senator from Utah Mitt Romney.[7][8]) During the 2001 to 2009 presidency of President George W. Bush, three foreign-born individuals became members of his cabinet—Elaine Chao and Mel Martínez in 2001; Carlos Gutierrez in 2005.[1]

The Department of the Treasury has had the most foreign-born secretaries, with five. The Department of Labor and the Department of the Interior follow with three, and the Departments of Housing and Urban Development and State have each had two. Former secretaries of state Henry Kissinger and Madeleine Albright were the highest-ranking foreign-born cabinet members ever in accordance to the United States presidential line of succession.[1] The majority of foreign-born cabinet members were born in Europe. Most European-born cabinet members originated from the United Kingdom and Germany (with five and four respectively), and the others were born in Ireland, Czechoslovakia, Switzerland, and Italy. Four cabinet members were born in the Americas, and one was born in Asia. The Departments of Defense, Justice, Health and Human Services, and Education have not had foreign-born secretaries.

Since most foreign-born cabinet members are not natural-born citizens—meaning that they were not born in the United States or born abroad to American parents—they are ineligible to exercise the powers of the president of the United States in the event that "neither a President nor Vice President" is able to "discharge the powers and duties" of the presidency as specified in the Presidential Succession Act of 1947.[9][10] A notable exception was HUD secretary George W. Romney, who was a birthright U.S. citizen because his parents were U.S. citizens and, in fact, had been a candidate in the Republican presidential primaries the prior year.

Permanent cabinet members

The Department of Defense was established in 1947; no foreign-born person has served yet.[11] The Department of Justice was established in 1870; no foreign-born person has served as Attorney General yet. The Department of Education was established in 1979; no foreign-born person has served yet.

 *  denotes the first foreign-born secretary of that particular department
Name Office Start End Birth Country[a] Party President(s) Ref.
Alexander Hamilton* Secretary of the Treasury September 11, 1789 January 31, 1795 Saint Kitts and Nevis (then the British Leeward Islands) Federalist George Washington
(1789–1797)		 [2][3]
James McHenry* Secretary of War January 27, 1796 May 13, 1800 United Kingdom (then the Kingdom of Ireland) [4]
John Adams
(1797–1801)
Albert Gallatin Secretary of the Treasury May 14, 1801 February 8, 1814 Switzerland (then the Republic of Geneva) Democratic-Republican Thomas Jefferson
(1801–1809)
George W. Campbell Secretary of the Treasury February 9, 1814 October 5, 1814 United Kingdom James Madison
(1809–1817)		 [12]
William J. Duane Secretary of the Treasury May 29, 1833 September 22, 1833 Ireland (then part of the United Kingdom) Democratic Andrew Jackson
(1829–1837)		 [13]
Carl Schurz* Secretary of the Interior March 12, 1877 March 7, 1881 Germany (then Prussia) Republican Rutherford B. Hayes
(1877–1881)		 [1][14]
James Wilson* Secretary of Agriculture March 6, 1897 March 3, 1913 United Kingdom William McKinley
(1897–1901)		 [15]
Theodore Roosevelt
(1901–1909)
William Howard Taft
(1909–1913)
Oscar Straus* Secretary of Commerce and Labor December 17, 1906 March 5, 1909 Germany (then the Kingdom of Bavaria) Republican Theodore Roosevelt
(1901–1909)		 [16]
William B. Wilson* Secretary of Labor March 5, 1913 March 5, 1921 United Kingdom Democratic Woodrow Wilson
(1913–1921)		 [17]
Franklin Lane Secretary of the Interior March 6, 1913 March 1, 1920 Canada (then Prince Edward Island) [18]
James J. Davis Secretary of Labor March 5, 1921 November 30, 1930 United Kingdom Republican Warren G. Harding
(1921–1923)		 [19][20]
Calvin Coolidge
(1923–1929)
Herbert Hoover
(1929–1933)
Anthony J. Celebrezze* Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare July 31, 1962 August 17, 1965 Italy Democratic John F. Kennedy
(1961–1963)		 [21]
Lyndon B. Johnson
(1963–1969)
George W. Romney* Secretary of Housing and Urban Development January 22, 1969 January 20, 1973 Mexico Republican Richard Nixon
(1969–1974)		 [7]
Henry Kissinger* Secretary of State September 22, 1973 January 20, 1977 Germany [22][23]
Gerald Ford
(1974–1977)
W. Michael Blumenthal Secretary of the Treasury January 23, 1977 August 4, 1979 Germany Democratic Jimmy Carter
(1977–1981)		 [24][25]
Madeleine Albright Secretary of State January 23, 1997 January 20, 2001 Czech Republic (then Czechoslovakia) Bill Clinton
(1993–2001)		 [26][27]
Mel Martínez Secretary of Housing and Urban Development January 24, 2001 August 13, 2004 Cuba Republican George W. Bush
(2001–2009)		 [1]
Elaine Chao Secretary of Labor January 29, 2001 January 20, 2009 Taiwan [1][28]
Carlos Gutierrez* Secretary of Commerce February 7, 2005 January 20, 2009 Cuba [29][30]
Sally Jewell Secretary of the Interior April 12, 2013 January 20, 2017 United Kingdom Democratic Barack Obama
(2009–2017)		 [31]
Elaine Chao* Secretary of Transportation January 31, 2017 January 11, 2021 Taiwan Republican Donald Trump
(2017–2021)		 [32]
Robert Wilkie* Secretary of Veterans Affairs July 30, 2018 January 20, 2021 Germany (then West Germany) [33]
Alejandro Mayorkas* Secretary of Homeland Security February 2, 2021 January 20, 2025 Cuba Democratic Joe Biden
(2021–2025)
Jennifer Granholm* Secretary of Energy February 25, 2021 January 20, 2025 Canada

Cabinet-level officials

The president may designate additional officials as members of the cabinet. These positions have not always been in the cabinet, so some female officeholders may not be listed.

The following list includes those who were born outside of the United States and have held cabinet-level positions other than the 15 executive departments.

 *  denotes the first foreign-born head of that particular agency
Name Office Start End Birth Country[a] Party President(s) Ref.
Zbigniew Brzezinski* National Security Advisor January 20, 1977 January 20, 1981 Poland Democratic Jimmy Carter
(1977–1981)
Madeleine Albright* Ambassador to the United Nations January 27, 1993 January 21, 1997 Czech Republic (then Czechoslovakia) Bill Clinton
(1993–2001)		 [26][27]
John M. Deutch* Director of Central Intelligence May 10, 1995 December 15, 1996 Belgium [34][35]
Samantha Power Ambassador to the United Nations August 5, 2013 January 20, 2017 United Kingdom Barack Obama
(2009–2017)		 [36]
Maria Contreras-Sweet* Administrator of the Small Business Administration April 7, 2014 January 20, 2017 Mexico [37]
Arati Prabhakar* Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy October 3, 2022 January 20, 2025 India Joe Biden
(2021–2025)		 [38]

Notes

  1. Noting the current equivalent and its name at the time of birth.

See also

References

  1. Haddock, Vicki (November 2, 2003). "President Schwarzenegger? Some think it's time to stop excluding foreign-born citizens from serving in the Oval Office". San Francisco Chronicle. Hearst Communications Inc. Retrieved January 21, 2009.
  2. "Alexander Hamilton". United States Department of the Treasury. Archived from the original on November 8, 2008. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  3. "Hamilton, Alexander, (1757–1804)". United States Congress. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  4. "James McHenry". United States Army. Archived from the original on August 10, 2020. Retrieved November 25, 2008.
  5. "Albert Gallatin". United States Department of the Treasury. Archived from the original on September 21, 2008. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  6. "Gallatin, Albert, (1761–1849)". United States Congress. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  7. Dobner, Jennifer; Johnson, Glen (February 24, 2007). "Polygamy Prominent in GOP Presidential Hopeful Mitt Romney's Family Tree". Fox News. Associated Press. Archived from the original on November 30, 2011. Retrieved November 20, 2011.
  8. Rutenberg, Jim; Zeleny, Jeff. "Mitt Romney". The New York Times. Retrieved February 1, 2009.
  9. "The Constitution of the United States: Article II. Executive Department (p.455-456)" (PDF). gpoaccess.gov. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 30, 2008. Retrieved November 25, 2008.
  10. "U.S. Code: Title 3, 19. Vacancy in offices of both President and Vice President; officers eligible to act". Cornell Law School. Retrieved November 16, 2008.
  11. "Histories of the Secretaries of Defense". United States Department of Defense. Archived from the original on October 5, 1999. Retrieved May 31, 2014.
  12. "Campbell, George Washington, (1769–1848)". United States Congress. Retrieved November 25, 2008.
  13. "William J. Duane (1833 -1833): Secretary of the Treasury". University of Virginia. Archived from the original on September 17, 2008. Retrieved November 25, 2008.
  14. "Schurz, Carl, (1829–1906)". United States Congress. Retrieved November 16, 2008.
  15. "Former Secretaries". www.usda.gov. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
  16. "Oscar S. Straus in Roosevelt's Cabinet; Will Be the First Jew to Hold Such a Post in This Country. Meyer Postmaster General Metcalf Secretary of the Navy -Cortelyou to Head the Treasury Department". The New York Times. October 24, 1906. Retrieved November 12, 2008.
  17. "William B. Wilson". United States Department of Labor. Archived from the original on October 28, 2008. Retrieved November 25, 2008.
  18. "Franklin Knight Lane". National Park Service. Archived from the original on December 13, 2007. Retrieved November 25, 2008.
  19. "James J. Davis". United States Department of Labor. Archived from the original on November 5, 2008. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  20. "Davis, James John, (1873–1947)". United States Congress. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  21. "Anthony J. Celebrezze 1910–1998". Ohio Northern University. Archived from the original on September 27, 2008. Retrieved November 25, 2008.
  22. "Henry Kissinger". Nobel Foundation. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  23. "Secretary of State Henry Alfred Kissinger". United States Department of State. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  24. "Michael Blumenthal". United States Department of the Treasury. Archived from the original on September 21, 2008. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  25. "W. Michael Blumenthal". Jewish Museum Berlin. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  26. "Secretary of State Madeleine Korbel Albright". United States Department of State. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  27. Brockes, Emma (October 30, 2003). "'I loved what I did'". The Guardian. London. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  28. "Profile: Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao". ABC News. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  29. "Carlos Gutierrez". United States Department of Commerce. Archived from the original on December 22, 2008. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  30. "Profile: Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez". ABC News. January 25, 2005. Retrieved November 10, 2008.
  31. "REI's Sally Jewell wins confirmation as Interior secretary". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  32. Jansen, Bart (January 31, 2017). "Elaine Chao Takes Oath to Become Transportation Secretary". USA Today. Retrieved February 1, 2017.
  33. Rosenbleeth, Herb (July 3, 2018). "Robert Wilkie Nominated for VA Secretary". Jewish War Veterans.
  34. Weiner, Tim (March 11, 1995). "Man in the News: John Mark Deutch; Reluctant Helmsman for a Troubled Agency". The New York Times. Retrieved January 20, 2009.
  35. Lewis, Neil A. (September 17, 2000). "Investigation Of Ex-Chief Of the C.I.A. Is Broadened". The New York Times. Retrieved January 20, 2009.
  36. Peters, Jeremy W. (August 1, 2013). "Senate Easily Approves Obama's U.N. Nominee". The New York Times. Retrieved February 7, 2016.
  37. "Maria Contreras-Sweet Confirmed As SBA Administrator". NBC News. March 27, 2014. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  38. "Senate Votes to Confirm Dr. Arati Prabhakar as Director of White House Office of Science and Technology Policy". American Kahani. September 22, 2022. Retrieved September 22, 2022.