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Designated survivor

Individual in the presidential line of succession

Note

the U.S. contingency plan to safeguard its line of presidential succession

In the United States, a designated survivor (or designated successor) is a person in the presidential line of succession who is kept distant from others in the line when they are gathered together, to reduce the chance that everyone in the line will be unable to take over the presidency in a catastrophic or mass-casualty event. The person is chosen to stay at an undisclosed secure location, away from events such as State of the Union addresses and presidential inaugurations. The designation of a survivor is intended to prevent the decapitation of the government and to safeguard continuity in the presidency if the president, the vice president, and others in the presidential line of succession die. The procedure began in the 1950s, during the Cold War, with the idea that a nuclear attack could kill government officials and the U.S. government would collapse.

In such an event, the surviving official highest in the line of succession in the Presidential Succession Act of 1947, who might be the designated survivor, would become acting president of the United States. The designated survivor must be eligible to serve as president. The designated survivor usually is a member of the president's Cabinet and is chosen by the president.

Being the designated survivor does not guarantee that this official will be the person to assume the presidency in such a situation. For the 2010 State of the Union address, Shaun Donovan, the secretary of housing and urban development, was the designated survivor, but Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also was absent from the address, for a conference in London; had a calamity occurred, Clinton, not Donovan, would have become acting president, because her office was higher in the line of succession.

Congress also designates members of the Senate and House (one from each party) to become congressional "designated survivors" to maintain the existence of Congress in a mass-casualty event.

Selection

In a 2016 interview, Jon Favreau, a speechwriter for President Barack Obama, said that the procedure for picking a designated survivor for a State of the Union address was "entirely random", but later clarified that the content of the speech played a role in who was permitted to be absent. Favreau said that for a State of the Union address in which Obama's education policy was a major focus, for example, the secretary of education, Arne Duncan, was not chosen as the designated survivor, because it was thought that he should attend and represent his department.

List of designated survivors

Date	Occasion	Designee	Position	Notes
January 25, 1984	State of the Union	Samuel Pierce	Secretary of Housing and Urban Development	url=http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/sou_cabinet.php	title=Cabinet Members Who Did Not Attend the State of the Union Address	website=www.presidency.ucsb.edu}}
January 21, 1985	Presidential Inauguration	Margaret Heckler	Secretary of Health and Human Services
February 6, 1985	State of the Union	Malcolm Baldrige	Secretary of Commerce
February 4, 1986	State of the Union	John Block	Secretary of Agriculture
January 27, 1987	State of the Union	Richard Lyng
January 25, 1988	State of the Union	Donald Hodel	Secretary of the Interior	last=Hershey	first=Robert D. Jr.	date=January 27, 1988	title=State of Union: Bewitched by Pageant	url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/01/27/us/washington-talk-presidential-message-state-of-union-bewitched-by-pageant.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm	url-access=limited	url-status=live	archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141207232014/https://www.nytimes.com/1988/01/27/us/washington-talk-presidential-message-state-of-union-bewitched-by-pageant.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm	archive-date=December 7, 2014	accessdate=February 13, 2013	newspaper=The New York Times}}
February 9, 1989	Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress	Lauro Cavazos	Secretary of Education
January 31, 1990	State of the Union	Edward J. Derwinski	Secretary of Veterans Affairs
January 29, 1991	State of the Union	Manuel Lujan	Secretary of the Interior
January 28, 1992	State of the Union	Ed Madigan	Secretary of Agriculture
February 17, 1993	Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress	Bruce Babbitt	Secretary of the Interior
January 25, 1994	State of the Union	Mike Espy	Secretary of Agriculture
January 24, 1995	State of the Union	Federico Peña	Secretary of Transportation
January 23, 1996	State of the Union	Donna Shalala	Secretary of Health and Human Services
February 4, 1997	State of the Union	Dan Glickman	Secretary of Agriculture
January 27, 1998	State of the Union	William Daley	Secretary of Commerce
January 19, 1999	State of the Union	Andrew Cuomo	Secretary of Housing and Urban Development	last1=Goodnough	first1=Abby	last2=Waldman	first2=Amy	last3=Barron	first3=James	date=January 21, 1999	title=Not Being Invited Was the Honor	language=en-US	work=The New York Times	url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/01/21/nyregion/public-lives.html	url-status=live	access-date=April 19, 2023	archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150527103950/https://www.nytimes.com/1999/01/21/nyregion/public-lives.html	archive-date=May 27, 2015	issn=0362-4331}}
January 27, 2000	State of the Union	Bill Richardson	Secretary of Energy
February 27, 2001	Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress	Anthony Principi	Secretary of Veterans Affairs
September 11–14, 2001	Following the September 11 attacks	Donald Evans	Secretary of Commerce
September 20, 2001	Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress (following the September 11 attacks)	Dick Cheney	Vice President
Tommy Thompson	Secretary of Health and Human Services
January 29, 2002	State of the Union	Gale Norton	Secretary of the Interior	date=January 30, 2002	title=THE STATE OF THE UNION; Cabinet's 'Designated Absentee' Stays Away	language=en-US	work=The New York Times	url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/01/30/us/the-state-of-the-union-cabinet-s-designated-absentee-stays-away.html	access-date=April 19, 2023	issn=0362-4331}}
January 28, 2003	State of the Union	John Ashcroft	Attorney General
Norman Mineta	Secretary of Transportation
January 20, 2004	State of the Union	Donald Evans	Secretary of Commerce
January 20, 2005	Presidential Inauguration	Gale Norton	Secretary of the Interior
February 2, 2005	State of the Union	Ted Stevens	President pro tempore of the Senate
Donald Evans	Secretary of Commerce
January 31, 2006	State of the Union	Ted Stevens	President pro tempore of the Senate
Jim Nicholson	Secretary of Veterans Affairs
January 23, 2007	State of the Union	Alberto Gonzales	Attorney General
January 28, 2008	State of the Union	Dirk Kempthorne	Secretary of the Interior	last=	first=	title=Interior secretary skips speech as safeguard	url=https://www.dispatch.com/story/news/2008/01/29/interior-secretary-skips-speech-as/24127456007/	access-date=April 19, 2023	website=The Columbus Dispatch	language=en-US}}
January 20, 2009	Presidential Inauguration	Robert Gates	Secretary of Defense
February 24, 2009	Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress	Eric Holder	Attorney General	last=O'Keefe	first=Ed	date=February 24, 2009	title=Holder Staying Away From Obama's Speech	url=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/federal-eye/2009/02/cabinet.html	archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120902091637/http://voices.washingtonpost.com/federal-eye/2009/02/cabinet.html	archive-date=September 2, 2012	access-date=December 16, 2022	newspaper=The Washington Post}}
September 9, 2009	Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress (Health Care Speech to Congress)	Steven Chu	Secretary of Energy
January 27, 2010	State of the Union	Hillary Clinton	Secretary of State
Shaun Donovan	Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
January 25, 2011	State of the Union	Ken Salazar	Secretary of the Interior	last=O'Keefe	first=Ed	date=January 25, 2011	title=State of the Union: Ken Salazar to serve as 'designated survivor'	url=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/federal-eye/2011/01/state_of_the_union_ken_salazar.html	archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121010005156/http://voices.washingtonpost.com/federal-eye/2011/01/state_of_the_union_ken_salazar.html	archive-date=October 10, 2012	accessdate=January 26, 2011	newspaper=The Washington Post}}
January 24, 2012	State of the Union	Tom Vilsack	Secretary of Agriculture	url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/federal-eye/post/state-of-the-union-tom-vilsack-to-serve-as-cabinets-designated-survivor/2012/01/24/gIQA8WnhOQ_blog.html	title=State of the Union: Tom Vilsack to serve as Cabinet's 'designated survivor	date=January 24, 2012	newspaper=The Washington Post	agency=Associated Press	accessdate=January 24, 2012}}
January 21, 2013	Presidential Inauguration	Eric Shinseki	Secretary of Veterans Affairs
February 12, 2013	State of the Union	Steven Chu	Secretary of Energy	author=Weiner	first=Rachel	date=February 12, 2013	title=Steven Chu is the State of the Union 'designated survivor'	url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2013/02/12/steven-chu-is-designated-survivor-for-state-of-the-union/	url-access=limited	url-status=live	archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170821125247/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2013/02/12/steven-chu-is-designated-survivor-for-state-of-the-union/	archive-date=August 21, 2017	newspaper=The Washington Post}}
January 28, 2014	State of the Union	Ernest Moniz
January 20, 2015	State of the Union	Anthony Foxx	Secretary of Transportation
January 12, 2016	State of the Union	Orrin Hatch	President pro tempore of the Senate
Jeh Johnson	Secretary of Homeland Security
January 20, 2017	Presidential Inauguration	Orrin Hatch	President pro tempore of the Senate
Jeh Johnson	Secretary of Homeland Security
February 28, 2017	Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress	David Shulkin	Secretary of Veterans Affairs
January 30, 2018	State of the Union	Sonny Perdue	Secretary of Agriculture
February 5, 2019	State of the Union	Rick Perry	Secretary of Energy
February 4, 2020	State of the Union	David Bernhardt	Secretary of the Interior
January 20, 2021	Presidential Inauguration	Undisclosed
April 28, 2021	Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress	None
March 1, 2022	State of the Union	Gina Raimondo	Secretary of Commerce
February 7, 2023	State of the Union	Marty Walsh	Secretary of Labor
March 7, 2024	State of the Union	Miguel Cardona	Secretary of Education
January 20, 2025	Presidential Inauguration	None
March 4, 2025	Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress	Doug Collins	Secretary of Veterans Affairs

Notes

References

Siegel, Benjamin. (January 13, 2016). "Meet Congress' State of the Union Designated Survivors".
Millstein. (February 6, 2019). "How Is The Designated Survivor Chosen? Rick Perry Won't Be At The 2019 SOTU".
"Cabinet Members Who Did Not Attend the State of the Union Address".
"Cabinet members who did not attend the State of the Union Address (since 1984)". [[United States Senate Historical Office]].
1984: UPI, "Washington Dateline." January 25, 1984
(January 2024). "Gainesville Sun - Google News Archive Search".
1985: UPI, "Washington News." February 6, 1985
Cillizza, Chris. "The story of a real-life 'Designated Survivor'". [[The Washington Post]].
(January 30, 2002). "THE STATE OF THE UNION; Cabinet's 'Designated Absentee' Stays Away". [[The New York Times]].
(January 19, 2017). "Designated survivor prepares for Inauguration Day".
Sacks, Mike. (January 19, 2017). "Designated survivor prepares for Inauguration Day".
(January 20, 2009). "US Defence Secretary Gates to sit out Obama inauguration".
Montopoli, Brian. (January 19, 2009). "Gates To Be Designated Successor On Inauguration Day". [[CBS News]].
(September 10, 2009). "Energy secretary skips Obama health care address".
O'Keefe, Ed. (January 25, 2011). "State of the Union: Ken Salazar to serve as 'designated survivor'". [[The Washington Post]].
(January 24, 2012). "State of the Union: Tom Vilsack to serve as Cabinet's 'designated survivor". [[The Washington Post]].
(January 21, 2013). "Shinseki absent from inaugural ceremonies". [[The San Diego Union-Tribune]].
Weiner. (February 12, 2013). "Steven Chu is the State of the Union 'designated survivor'". [[The Washington Post]].
(January 28, 2014). "Energy Secretary to be Designated Survivor during State of the Union". [[Fox News]].
Miller, Zeke J. (January 28, 2014). "This Man Will Be Your President If The Worst Happens Happens". [[Time (magazine).
Jackson, David. (January 20, 2015). "Obama's 'designated survivor:' Anthony Foxx". [[USA Today]].
Jackson, David. (January 20, 2015). "If the Worst Happens at the State of the Union, Anthony Foxx Will Lead the Country". NationalJournal.
Shalby, Colleen. (January 12, 2016). "If #SOTU disaster strikes, Jeh Johnson ... or a Republican would become president". [[Los Angeles Times]].
Saenz, Arlette. (January 12, 2016). "State of the Union: Jeh Johnson Named Designated Survivor". [[ABC News (United States).
"Sen. Orrin Hatch acting as a designated survivor during inauguration".
(January 20, 2017). "Jeh Johnson is designated survivor for inauguration".
(January 24, 2017). "Trump to address a joint session of Congress on Feb. 28". [[The Washington Post]].
Stracqualursi, Veronica. (March 1, 2017). "VA Secretary David Shulkin chosen as designated survivor". [[ABC News (United States).
Westwood, Sarah. "Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue State of the Union 'designated survivor'". Washington Examiner.
(February 5, 2019). "Energy Secretary Rick Perry is the designated survivor". [[CNN]].
Choi, Matthew. (February 4, 2020). "The State of the Union's designated survivor: Interior Secretary David Bernhardt". [[Politico]].
Knoller, Mark. (February 4, 2020). "What to know about the "designated survivor" and State of the Union".
Kime, Patricia. (January 20, 2021). "Who Was the Designated Survivor for the Inauguration? Outgoing Administration Doesn't Say". [[Military.com]].
Leonard, Ben. "No designated survivor for Biden's first joint address to Congress".
Lee, Min Jung. (February 24, 2022). "White House chief of staff tells House Democrats he's hoping State of the Union address will boost Biden's poll numbers {{!}} CNN Politics".
(February 7, 2023). "Labor Secretary Walsh is the 'designated survivor' at the State of the Union address".
(March 8, 2024). "Education Secretary Miguel Cardona is the designated survivor for the State of the Union".
(January 20, 2025). "Who Is the ‘Designated Survivor’ for Donald Trump’s Second Inauguration?". [[WNBC]].
"Georgia’s Doug Collins is designated survivor at Trump’s congressional address".

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