List of African-American United States Cabinet members facts for kids

Kamala Harris is the highest-ranking black person to serve in a Cabinet as Vice President of the United States.

Colin Powell (left) and Condoleezza Rice (right) are the highest-ranking black Jamaican-American and Black-American to lead the Federal Executive Department; each held the post of Secretary of State.

The Cabinet of the United States is a group of important advisors to the President of the United States. These advisors lead different parts of the government. So far, 37 different African Americans have served in the Cabinet. One person even held two different Cabinet jobs!

African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States whose families came from Africa. For a long time, Black Americans faced unfair treatment. They were not allowed to hold important government jobs like Cabinet positions. This changed after the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This law made it illegal to treat people differently because of their race.

African Americans in the U.S. Cabinet
Permanent Cabinet Members
- Past Cabinet Roles
Cabinet-Level Positions
See also

African Americans in the U.S. Cabinet

Breaking Barriers in Government

The first Black American to join a president's Cabinet was Robert C. Weaver. President Lyndon B. Johnson chose him in 1966. He became the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. This department helps with housing and city development.

Later, Patricia Roberts Harris became the first Black woman in a presidential Cabinet. President Jimmy Carter appointed her in 1977 to the same role. Two years later, she made history again. She became the first African American to hold two different Cabinet jobs. She also served as Secretary of Health and Human Services.

High-Ranking Black Cabinet Members

On January 20, 2001, Colin Powell became Secretary of State. He served under President George W. Bush. This made him the highest-ranking Black Jamaican-American in the Cabinet. The Secretary of State is fourth in line to become president.

In 2005, Condoleezza Rice took over as Secretary of State. She became the highest-placed Black person in line to the presidency at that time.

Then, on January 20, 2021, Kamala Harris made history. She became the first Black Jamaican/Indian-American Vice President of the United States. This made her the highest-ranking Black person ever in the line of succession to the presidency. She serves alongside President Joe Biden.

Presidents and Their Diverse Cabinets

President Bill Clinton appointed the most African Americans to his first Cabinet. He chose four Black secretaries. They were Mike Espy for Agriculture, Ron Brown for Commerce, Hazel R. O'Leary for Energy, and Jesse Brown for Veterans Affairs. President Clinton appointed even more Black Cabinet members during his second term.

Departments with Black Secretaries

The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development has had the most African-American secretaries, with seven. Other departments have also had Black leaders. These include Transportation, Education, Health and Human Services, Justice, State, and Veterans Affairs. The Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Energy, Homeland Security, and Labor have each had one.

Only two main departments have not yet had an African-American secretary. These are the Department of the Interior and the Department of the Treasury.

Barack Obama's Role

Barack Obama was the 44th President of the United States. He was the most senior African American to hold a role related to the U.S. Cabinet. While he wasn't a member himself, he led the Cabinet meetings during his time as president.

Permanent Cabinet Members

This section lists African Americans who have held permanent Cabinet positions. These roles are part of the line of succession to the presidency. The table is organized by when their terms began. If terms started on the same day, they are listed by the order of succession.

* means this person was the first African American to hold that specific job

No.	Name	Office	Succession	Term start	Term end		Administration(s)
1	Weaver, Robert C.Robert C. Weaver*	Secretary of Housing and Urban Development	13	January 18, 1966	December 18, 1968	Democratic	Johnson
2	Coleman, WilliamWilliam Coleman*	Secretary of Transportation	14	March 7, 1975	January 20, 1977	Republican	Ford
3/4	Harris, PatriciaPatricia Harris	Secretary of Housing and Urban Development	13	January 23, 1977	September 10, 1979	Democratic	Carter
Secretary of Health and Human Services	Harris, PatriciaPatricia Harris	12	August 3, 1979	January 20, 1981		Democratic	Carter
5	Pierce, SamuelSamuel Pierce	Secretary of Housing and Urban Development	13	January 23, 1981	January 20, 1989	Republican	Reagan
6	Sullivan, Louis W.Louis W. Sullivan	Secretary of Health and Human Services	12	March 1, 1989	January 20, 1993	Republican	George H. W. Bush
7	Espy, MikeMike Espy*	Secretary of Agriculture	9	January 22, 1993	December 31, 1994	Democratic	Clinton
8	Brown, RonRon Brown*	Secretary of Commerce	10	January 22, 1993	April 3, 1996
9	O'Leary, Hazel R.Hazel R. O'Leary*	Secretary of Energy	15	January 22, 1993	January 20, 1997
10	Brown, JesseJesse Brown*	Secretary of Veterans Affairs	17	January 22, 1993	July 13, 1997
11	Slater, Rodney E.Rodney E. Slater	Secretary of Transportation	14	February 14, 1997	January 20, 2001
12	Herman, AlexisAlexis Herman*	Secretary of Labor	11	May 1, 1997	January 20, 2001
13	West, Togo D.Togo D. West	Secretary of Veterans Affairs	17	May 4, 1998	July 25, 2000
14	Powell, ColinColin Powell*	Secretary of State	4	January 20, 2001	January 26, 2005	Republican	George W. Bush
15	Paige, RodRod Paige*	Secretary of Education	16	January 20, 2001	January 20, 2005
16	Jackson, AlphonsoAlphonso Jackson	Secretary of Housing and Urban Development	13	August 31, 2004	April 18, 2008
17	Rice, CondoleezzaCondoleezza Rice	Secretary of State	4	January 26, 2005	January 20, 2009
18	Holder, EricEric Holder*	Attorney General	7	February 3, 2009	April 27, 2015	Democratic	Obama
19	Foxx, AnthonyAnthony Foxx	Secretary of Transportation	14	July 2, 2013	January 20, 2017
20	Johnson, JehJeh Johnson*	Secretary of Homeland Security	18	December 23, 2013	January 20, 2017
21	Lynch, LorettaLoretta Lynch	Attorney General	7	April 27, 2015	January 20, 2017
22	King, JohnJohn King	Secretary of Education	16	January 1, 2016	January 20, 2017
23	Carson, BenBen Carson	Secretary of Housing and Urban Development	13	March 2, 2017	January 20, 2021	Republican	Trump
24	Harris, KamalaKamala Harris*	Vice President	1	January 20, 2021	January 20, 2025	Democratic	Biden
25	Austin, LloydLloyd Austin*	Secretary of Defense	6	January 22, 2021	January 20, 2025
26	Fudge, MarciaMarcia Fudge	Secretary of Housing and Urban Development	13	March 10, 2021	March 22, 2024
27	Turner, ScottScott Turner	Secretary of Housing and Urban Development	13	February 5, 2025	Incumbent	Republican	Trump II

Past Cabinet Roles

Some government jobs used to be part of the Cabinet but are not anymore. No African American served in these roles when they were Cabinet positions:

The Postmaster General (head of the Post Office)
The Secretaries of the Navy, Air Force, and Army (these jobs became part of the Department of Defense)
The Secretary of War (this job also became part of the Department of Defense)
The Secretary of Commerce and Labor (this job split into two separate departments)

Cabinet-Level Positions

Besides the main Cabinet members, a president can also choose other officials to have "cabinet-level" status. These positions are important but are not in the line of succession to the presidency. This means they would not become president if something happened to the president and vice president.

This list shows African Americans who have held these special cabinet-level jobs. The table is organized by when their terms began. If terms started on the same day, they are listed in alphabetical order by last name.

* means this person was the first African American to hold that specific job

No.	Name	Office	Term start	Term end		Administration(s)
1	Young, AndrewAndrew Young*	United States Ambassador to the United Nations	January 30, 1977	September 23, 1979	Democratic	Carter
2	McHenry, DonaldDonald McHenry	United States Ambassador to the United Nations	September 23, 1979	January 20, 1981	Democratic	Carter
3	Perkins, Edward J.Edward J. Perkins	United States Ambassador to the United Nations	May 12, 1992	January 27, 1993	Republican	H. W. Bush Clinton
4	Raines, FranklinFranklin Raines*	Director of the Office of Management and Budget	April 13, 1996	May 21, 1998	Democratic	Clinton
5	Jackson, Lisa P.Lisa P. Jackson*	Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency	January 23, 2009	February 19, 2013	Democratic	Obama
6	Rice, SusanSusan Rice	United States Ambassador to the United Nations	January 26, 2009	June 30, 2013	Democratic
7	Kirk, RonRon Kirk*	United States Trade Representative	March 18, 2009	March 15, 2013	Democratic
8	Thomas-Greenfield, LindaLinda Thomas-Greenfield	United States Ambassador to the United Nations	February 25, 2021	January 20, 2025	Democratic	Biden
9	Regan, Michael S.Michael S. Regan	Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency	March 11, 2021	December 31, 2024	Democratic
10	Rouse, CeciliaCecilia Rouse*	Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers	March 12, 2021	March 31, 2023	Democratic
11	Young, ShalandaShalanda Young	Director of the Office of Management and Budget	March 17, 2022	January 20, 2025	Democratic