United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs
| Secretary of Veterans Affairs of the United States of America | |
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Seal of the Department of Veterans Affairs
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Flag of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs
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| United States Department of Veterans Affairs | |
| Style | Mr. Secretary |
| Member of | Cabinet |
| Reports to | The President |
| Seat | Washington, D.C. |
| Appointer | The President with Senate advice and consent |
| Term length | No fixed term |
| Constituting instrument | 38 U.S.C. § 303 |
| Formation | March 15, 1989 |
| First holder | Ed Derwinski |
| Succession | Seventeenth in the United States Presidential Line of Succession |
| Deputy | Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs |
| Salary | Executive Schedule, level 1 |
| Website | www.VA.gov |
The United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs is the head of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the department concerned with veterans' benefits, health care, and national veterans' memorials and cemeteries. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and second to last at Sixteenth in the line of succession to the presidency (the position was last until the addition of the United States Department of Homeland Security in 2006[1]). To date, all appointees and acting appointees to the post have been United States military veterans, but that is not a requirement to fill the position.
When the post of Secretary is vacant, the United States Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs[2] or any other person designated by the President serves as Acting Secretary[2] until the President nominates and the United States Senate confirms a new Secretary.
Contents
List of Secretaries of Veterans Affairs
- Parties
No party Democratic Republican
- Status
| No. | Portrait | Name | State of Residence | Took Office | Left Office | President(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
Ed Derwinski | Illinois | March 15, 1989 | September 26, 1992 | George H. W. Bush | |
| – |  |
Anthony Principi[1] (acting) |
California | September 26, 1992 | January 20, 1993 | ||
| 2 |  |
Jesse Brown | Illinois | January 22, 1993 | July 1, 1997 | Bill Clinton | |
| – |  |
Hershel W. Gober[2] (acting) |
Arkansas | July 1, 1997 | January 2, 1998 | ||
| 3 |  |
Togo D. West, Jr. | District of Columbia | January 2, 1998[3] | May 5, 1998 | ||
| May 5, 1998 | July 25, 2000 | ||||||
| – | |
Hershel W. Gober[2] (acting) |
Arkansas | July 25, 2000 | January 20, 2001 | ||
| 4 | |
Anthony Principi | California | January 23, 2001 | January 26, 2005 | George W. Bush | |
| 5 |  |
Jim Nicholson, Colonel, USA (Ret.) |
Colorado | January 26, 2005 | October 1, 2007 | ||
| – |  |
Gordon H. Mansfield[4] (acting) |
Florida | October 1, 2007 | December 20, 2007 | ||
| 6 |  |
James B. Peake, Lt.Gen., USA (Ret.) |
District of Columbia | December 20, 2007 | January 20, 2009 | ||
| 7 |  |
Eric Shinseki, General, USA (Ret.) |
Hawaii | January 20, 2009 | May 30, 2014 | Barack Obama | |
| – |  |
Sloan D. Gibson (acting) |
Alabama | May 30, 2014 | July 30, 2014 | ||
| 8 |  |
Robert McDonald, Captain, USA |
Ohio | July 30, 2014 | January 20, 2017 | ||
| 9 | 75px | David Shulkin, M.D. | Pennsylvania | February 14, 2017 | Incumbent | Donald Trump | |
1 Anthony Principi served as acting secretary in his capacity as Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs September 26, 1992—January 20, 1993.
2 Hershel W. Gober served as acting secretary in his capacity as Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs July 1, 1997—January 2, 1998 and July 25, 2000—January 20, 2001.[3]
3 West served as acting Secretary from January 2, 1998[4] to May 5, 1998.[5]
4 Gordon H. Mansfield served as acting secretary in his capacity as Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs October 1—December 20, 2007.[6]
Living former Secretaries of Veterans Affairs
As of June 2024, there are five living former Secretaries of Veterans Affairs, the oldest being Jim Nicholson (2005-2007, born 1938). The most recent Secretary of Veterans Affairs to pass away was Ed Derwinski (1989-1992), on January 15, 2012.
| Name | Term of office | Date of birth (and age) |
|---|---|---|
| Togo D. West, Jr. | 1998-2000 | June 21, 1942 |
| Anthony Principi | 2001–2005 | April 16, 1944 |
| Jim Nicholson | 2005-2007 | February 4, 1938 |
| James Peake | 2007–2009 | June 18, 1944 |
| Eric Shinseki | 2009–2014 | November 28, 1942 |
See also
- Administrator of Veterans Affairs (United States)
- United States Department of Veterans Affairs
- Veterans Health Administration
Notes and references
- ↑ Public Law 109-177§.503
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 : Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs. Accessed 2008-01-13.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ UPI. Peake sworn in as VA secretary, Dec 20, 2007. Accessed 21 Dec 2007.
| United States presidential line of succession | ||
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| Preceded by | 17th in line | Succeeded by Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly |
 United States Secretaries of Veterans Affairs |
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