Designated survivor

In the United States, a designated survivor (or designated successor) is a named individual in the presidential line of succession, chosen to stay at an undisclosed secure location, away from events such as State of the Union addresses and presidential inaugurations. The practice of designating a successor is intended to prevent a hypothetical decapitation of the government and to safeguard continuity in the office of the president in the event the president along with the vice president and multiple other officials in the presidential line of succession die in a mass-casualty incident. The procedure originated in the 1950s during the Cold War with its risk of nuclear attack.

If such an event occurred, the surviving official highest in the line of succession as delineated in the Presidential Succession Act of 1947 would become Acting President of the United States. Consequently, the individual named as a designated survivor must be eligible to serve as president. In practice, the designated survivor is usually a member of the president's Cabinet, and is chosen by the president.

Congress also designates members of the Senate and House, one from each party to become their own "designated survivor" to maintain the existence of Congress in the event of a mass-casualty event.[1]

Selection

The process for selection of the designated survivor has been described by those involved to be entirely random. However, the character of the event for which a designated survivor is being selected may cause some officials to be avoided in the selection process.[2]

List of designated survivors
Date Occasion Designee Position Notes
February 18, 1981 Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress[lower-alpha 1] Terrel Bell Secretary of Education [3]
January 25, 1984 State of the Union Samuel Pierce Secretary of Housing and Urban Development [4][5][6][7]
January 21, 1985 Presidential Inauguration Margaret Heckler Secretary of Health and Human Services [8]
February 6, 1985 State of the Union Malcolm Baldrige Secretary of Commerce [4][5][7][9]
February 4, 1986 State of the Union John Block Secretary of Agriculture [4][5][7][10]
January 27, 1987 State of the Union Richard Lyng Secretary of Agriculture [4][5][7][11]
January 25, 1988 State of the Union Donald Hodel Secretary of the Interior [4][3][5][7]
February 9, 1989 Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress[lower-alpha 1] Lauro Cavazos Secretary of Education [12]
January 31, 1990 State of the Union Edward J. Derwinski Secretary of Veterans Affairs [4][5][7][13]
January 29, 1991 State of the Union Manuel Lujan Secretary of the Interior [4][5][7][14]
January 28, 1992 State of the Union Ed Madigan Secretary of Agriculture [4][5][7]
February 17, 1993 Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress[lower-alpha 1] Bruce Babbitt Secretary of the Interior [4][5][7]
January 25, 1994 State of the Union Mike Espy Secretary of Agriculture [4][5][7]
January 24, 1995 State of the Union Federico Peña Secretary of Transportation [4][5][7]
January 23, 1996 State of the Union Donna Shalala Secretary of Health and Human Services [4][5][7][15]
February 4, 1997 State of the Union Dan Glickman Secretary of Agriculture [4][5][7][16]
January 27, 1998 State of the Union William Daley Secretary of Commerce [4][5][7]
January 19, 1999 State of the Union Andrew Cuomo Secretary of Housing and Urban Development [4][5][7][17]
January 27, 2000 State of the Union Bill Richardson Secretary of Energy [4][5][7][18]
February 27, 2001 Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress[lower-alpha 1] Anthony Principi Secretary of Veterans Affairs [4][5][7]
September 11 – 14, 2001 Following the September 11 attacks Donald Evans Secretary of Commerce [4][5][7]
September 20, 2001 Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress
(following the September 11 attacks)		 Dick Cheney Vice President [4][19]
Tommy Thompson Secretary of Health and Human Services
January 29, 2002 State of the Union Gale Norton Secretary of the Interior [5][7][20]
January 28, 2003 State of the Union John Ashcroft Attorney General [4][5][7][21]
Norman Mineta Secretary of Transportation
January 20, 2004 State of the Union Donald Evans Secretary of Commerce [4][5][7][22]
January 20, 2005 Presidential Inauguration Gale Norton Secretary of the Interior [23][24]
February 2, 2005 State of the Union Ted Stevens President pro tempore of the Senate[lower-alpha 2] [4][5][7][25]
Donald Evans Secretary of Commerce
January 31, 2006 State of the Union Ted Stevens President pro tempore of the Senate[lower-alpha 2] [4][5][7][26]
Jim Nicholson Secretary of Veterans Affairs
January 23, 2007 State of the Union Alberto Gonzales Attorney General[lower-alpha 2] [4][5][7][27]
January 28, 2008 State of the Union Dirk Kempthorne Secretary of the Interior [4][5][7][28]
January 20, 2009 Presidential Inauguration Robert Gates Secretary of Defense [29][30]
February 24, 2009 Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress[lower-alpha 1] Eric Holder Attorney General [4][5][7][31]
September 9, 2009 Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress
(Health Care Speech to Congress)		 Steven Chu Secretary of Energy [32]
January 27, 2010 State of the Union Hillary Clinton[lower-alpha 3] Secretary of State [4][5][7][33]
Shaun Donovan Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
January 25, 2011 State of the Union Ken Salazar Secretary of the Interior [5][7][34]
January 24, 2012 State of the Union Tom Vilsack Secretary of Agriculture [5][7][35]
January 21, 2013 Presidential Inauguration Eric Shinseki Secretary of Veterans Affairs [36]
February 12, 2013 State of the Union Steven Chu Secretary of Energy [7]
January 28, 2014 State of the Union Ernest Moniz Secretary of Energy [37][38]
January 20, 2015 State of the Union Anthony Foxx Secretary of Transportation [39][40]
January 12, 2016 State of the Union Orrin Hatch President pro tempore of the Senate [41]
Jeh Johnson Secretary of Homeland Security [42]
January 20, 2017 Presidential Inauguration Orrin Hatch President pro tempore of the Senate [43]
Jeh Johnson Secretary of Homeland Security [44]
February 28, 2017 Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress[lower-alpha 1] David Shulkin Secretary of Veterans Affairs [45][46][47]
January 30, 2018 State of the Union Sonny Perdue Secretary of Agriculture [48]
February 5, 2019 State of the Union Rick Perry Secretary of Energy [49]
February 4, 2020 State of the Union David Bernhardt Secretary of the Interior [50][51]
January 20, 2021 Presidential Inauguration Undisclosed [52]
April 28, 2021 Presidential Address to Joint Session of Congress[lower-alpha 1] None[lower-alpha 4] [53]
March 1, 2022 State of the Union Gina Raimondo Secretary of Commerce [54]

Portrayal in media
  • In The West Wing episode He Shall, from Time to Time..., Josh Lyman is instructed to "pick a guy" (referring to the designated survivor) for when the President gives his State of the Union Address. Ultimately, Secretary of Agriculture Roger Tribbey is chosen.[55]
  • The role was the focus of the 2016 political drama series Designated Survivor, in which Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Tom Kirkman (Kiefer Sutherland) is sworn in as president following a terrorist attack that destroys the United States Capitol. The show also features another designated survivor from Congress, a member of the Republican Party.[56]

Notes
  1. 1981, 1989, 1993, 2001, 2009, 2017 and 2021 speeches were given by incoming presidents and not formal "State of the Union" addresses.
  2. For the 2005, 2006 and 2007 State of the Union addresses, the President pro tempore of the Senate would have been the highest-ranking survivor.
  3. While Shaun Donovan was the designated survivor, Hillary Clinton was overseas and was the de facto designated survivor as the most senior person in the line of succession not present.
  4. Due to COVID-19 protocols requiring limited attendance, most of the cabinet was not present for the speech and thus no formal designated survivor was named. United States Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen was the de facto designated survivor as the most senior person in the line of succession not present.

References
  1. "Meet Congress' State of the Union Designated Survivors". ABC News.
  2. Seth Millstein (February 6, 2019). "How Is The Designated Survivor Chosen? Rick Perry Won't Be At The 2019 SOTU". Bustle. CBS News reports that the president and their staff are responsible for selecting the designated survivor, and Jon Favreau, Barack Obama's former lead speechwriter, spoke to The Ringer about the designated survivor selection process in 2016. Favreau initially said that the process is "entirely random," but then backtracked a bit and said that sometimes, the designated survivor depends on what the president intends to say in their speech.
  3. Hershey, Robert D. Jr. (January 27, 1988). "State of Union: Bewitched by Pageant". The New York Times. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
  4. "Cabinet Members Who Did Not Attend the State of the Union Address". www.presidency.ucsb.edu.
  5. "Cabinet members who did not attend the State of the Union Address (since 1984)" (PDF). United States Senate Historical Office.
  6. 1984: UPI, "Washington Dateline." January 25, 1984
  7. Rachel Weiner (February 12, 2013). "Steven Chu is the State of the Union 'designated survivor'". The Washington Post.
  8. "Gainesville Sun - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com.
  9. 1985: UPI, "Washington News." February 6, 1985
  10. 1986: UPI, "Washington News." February 4, 1986
  11. 1987: UPI, "Washington News." January 28, 1987
  12. Cillizza, Chris. "The story of a real-life 'Designated Survivor'". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
  13. 1990: Washington Post, Page C3. January 31, 1991
  14. 1991: Washington Post, Page C3. January 31, 1991
  15. 1996: USA Today, Page A12. February 5, 1997
  16. 1997: Washington Post, "Agriculture's Glickman Draws Doomsday Duty for Address." Page A13. February 4, 1997
  17. 1999: The New York Times, "Not Being Invited Was the Honor." Page B2. January 21, 1999
  18. 2000: Washington Post, "The Reliable Source." Page C3. January 28, 2000
  19. 2001: New York Times, "Cabinet's 'Designated Absentee' Stays Away." Page A23. January 30, 2002
  20. 2002: New York Times, "Cabinet's 'Designated Absentee' Stays Away." Page A23. January 30, 2002
  21. 2003: New York Times, "Ashcroft in Secret Spot During Bush Address." January 29, 2003
  22. 2004: AP, "Four to Miss Speech Due to Security." January 20, 2004
  23. "Designated survivor prepares". KMGH. January 19, 2017. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  24. "Designated survivor prepares". WGBA. January 19, 2017. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  25. 2005: The New York Times, "Five Officials Skip State of the Union Address." February 2, 2005.
  26. 2006: The Philadelphia Inquirer, "A Message of Energy, Strength." February 1, 2006.
  27. 2007: Washington Post, "The Reliable Source." Page C3. January 25, 2007.
  28. 2008: AP, "Interior Secretary Skips Speech," January 28, 2008
  29. 2009: AFP American Edition, "Gates to Sit out Obama Inauguration," January 19, 2009
  30. Gates To Be Designated Successor On Inauguration Day, CBS News, January 19, 2009.
  31. Holder Staying Away From Obama's Speech, The Washington Post, February 24, 2009.
  32. "Energy secretary skips Obama health care address".
  33. 2006: CNN, "Secretary Clinton misses State of the Union speech." January 27, 2010.
  34. O'Keefe, Ed (January 25, 2011). "State of the Union: Ken Salazar to serve as 'designated survivor'". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 26, 2011.
  35. "State of the Union: Tom Vilsack to serve as Cabinet's 'designated survivor". The Washington Post. Associated Press. January 24, 2012. Retrieved January 24, 2012.
  36. "Shinseki absent from inaugural". Miami Herald. January 22, 2013. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  37. "Energy Secretary to be Designated Survivor during State of the Union". FOX News. January 28, 2014.
  38. Miller, Zeke J (January 28, 2014). "This Man Will Be Your President If The Worst Happens Happens". Time. Archived from the original on January 30, 2014. Retrieved January 29, 2014.
  39. "Obama's 'designated survivor:' Anthony Foxx". USA Today. January 20, 2015.
  40. Jackson, David (January 20, 2015). "O". NationalJournal. Archived from the original on January 21, 2015. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
  41. Shalby, Colleen (January 12, 2016). "If #SOTU disaster strikes, Jeh Johnson ... or a Republican would become president". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
  42. Saenz, Arlette (January 12, 2016). "State of the Union: Jeh Johnson Named Designated Survivor". ABC News.
  43. Tribune, The Salt Lake. "Sen. Orrin Hatch acting as a designated survivor during inauguration". The Salt Lake Tribune. Archived from the original on September 5, 2017. Retrieved January 20, 2017.
  44. Weaver, Dustin (January 20, 2017). "Jeh Johnson is designated survivor for inauguration". TheHill. Retrieved January 20, 2017.
  45. DeBonis, Mike; Johnson, Jenna (January 24, 2017). "Trump to address a joint session of Congress on Feb. 28". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 3, 2017.
  46. "Philip Rucker on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
  47. "VA Secretary David Shulkin chosen as designated survivor". ABC News.
  48. Westwood, Sarah. "Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue State of the Union 'designated survivor'". Washington Examiner. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
  49. Klein, Betsy; Gray, Noah (February 5, 2019). "Energy Secretary Rick Perry is the designated survivor". CNN. Retrieved February 5, 2019.
  50. Choi, Matthew (February 4, 2020). "The State of the Union's designated survivor: Interior Secretary David Bernhardt". Politico. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  51. "What to know about the "designated survivor" and State of the Union". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  52. Kime, Patricia (January 20, 2021). "Who Was the Designated Survivor for the Inauguration? Outgoing Administration Doesn't Say". Military.com. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  53. Leonard, Ben. "No designated survivor for Biden's first joint address to Congress". POLITICO. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  54. Lee, M. J. (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". CNN. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
  55. Webster, Patrick (April 21, 2020). Windows into The West Wing: Theoretical Approaches to an Ideal Presidency. McFarland. p. 16. ISBN 978-1-4766-8035-4.
  56. Cillizza, Chris (September 21, 2016). "The story of a real-life 'Designated Survivor'". Washington Post. Retrieved March 6, 2021.
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