United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs facts for kids

Quick facts for kids United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs
Flag of the secretary
Seal of the Department of Veterans Affairs
Incumbent Doug Collins since February 5, 2025
United States Department of Veterans Affairs
Style	Mr. Secretary (informal) The Honorable (formal)
Member of	United States Cabinet
Reports to	President of the United States
Seat	Washington, D.C.
Appointer	President of the United States 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
Deputy	United States Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs
Salary	Executive Schedule, level I

The United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs is the main leader of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. This important government department helps military veterans. It makes sure they get benefits, health care, and have special places like memorials and cemeteries.

The Secretary is a member of the President's Cabinet. This is a group of top advisors to the President. The Secretary is also part of the line of succession to the presidency. This means if something happened to many leaders, the Secretary could become President. They are currently seventeenth in this line. For a long time, most people in this job were military veterans. However, being a veteran is not a rule for holding this position.

If the Secretary's job is empty, the Deputy Secretary or someone else chosen by the President takes over. This person is called the "acting secretary." They serve until the President picks a new Secretary and the United States Senate approves them.

Who Are the Secretaries of Veterans Affairs?

This section lists the people who have served as the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

Political Parties

      No party (2)       Democratic (3)       Republican (7)

Job Status

     Acting Secretary of Veterans Affairs

No.	Secretary			Time in Office			President(s)
	Picture	Name	Home State	Started Office	Left Office	How Long They Served
1		Derwinski, EdEd Derwinski	Illinois	March 15, 1989	September 26, 1992	3 years, 195 days		Bush, George H. W.George H. W. Bush (1989–1993)
–		Principi, AnthonyAnthony Principi Acting	California	September 26, 1992	January 20, 1993	116 days
2		Brown, JesseJesse Brown	Illinois	January 22, 1993	July 13, 1997	4 years, 172 days		Clinton, BillBill Clinton (1993–2001)
–		Gober, Hershel W.Hershel W. Gober Acting	Arkansas	July 13, 1997	January 2, 1998	173 days
3		West Jr., Togo D.Togo D. West Jr.	District of Columbia	January 2, 1998	May 4, 1998	122 days
				May 4, 1998	July 25, 2000	2 years, 82 days
–		Gober, Hershel W.Hershel W. Gober Acting	Arkansas	July 25, 2000	January 20, 2001	179 days
4		Principi, AnthonyAnthony Principi	California	January 23, 2001	January 26, 2005	4 years, 3 days		Bush, George W.George W. Bush (2001–2009)
5		Nicholson, JimJim Nicholson	Colorado	January 26, 2005	October 1, 2007	2 years, 248 days
–		Mansfield, Gordon H.Gordon H. Mansfield Acting	Florida	October 1, 2007	December 20, 2007	80 days
6		Peake, JamesJames Peake	District of Columbia	December 20, 2007	January 20, 2009	1 year, 31 days
7		Shinseki, EricEric Shinseki	Hawaii	January 20, 2009	May 30, 2014	5 years, 130 days		Obama, BarackBarack Obama (2009–2017)
–		Gibson, Sloan D.Sloan D. Gibson Acting	Alabama	May 30, 2014	July 30, 2014	61 days
8		McDonald, BobBob McDonald	Ohio	July 30, 2014	January 20, 2017	2 years, 174 days
–		Snyder, RobertRobert Snyder Acting	West Virginia	January 20, 2017	February 14, 2017	25 days		Trump, DonaldDonald Trump (2017–2021)
9		Shulkin, DavidDavid Shulkin	Pennsylvania	February 14, 2017	March 28, 2018	1 year, 42 days
–		Wilkie, RobertRobert Wilkie Acting	North Carolina	March 28, 2018	May 29, 2018	62 days
–		O'Rourke, PeterPeter O'Rourke Acting	Virginia	May 29, 2018	July 30, 2018	62 days
10		Wilkie, RobertRobert Wilkie	North Carolina	July 30, 2018	January 20, 2021	2 years, 174 days
–		Tran, DatDat Tran Acting	Ohio	January 20, 2021	February 9, 2021	20 days		Biden, JoeJoe Biden (2021–2025)
11		McDonough, DenisDenis McDonough	Minnesota	February 9, 2021	January 20, 2025	3 years, 346 days
–		Hunter, Todd B.Todd B. Hunter Acting		January 20, 2025	February 5, 2025	16 days		Trump, DonaldDonald Trump (2025–present)
12		Collins, DougDoug Collins	Georgia	February 5, 2025	Incumbent	180 days

• Anthony Principi was an Acting Secretary from September 26, 1992, to January 20, 1993. He also served as the Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
• Hershel W. Gober was an Acting Secretary twice. First from July 13, 1997, to January 2, 1998. Then again from July 25, 2000, to January 20, 2001. He was also the Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
• Togo D. West Jr. was an Acting Secretary from January 2, 1998, to May 4, 1998.
• Gordon H. Mansfield was an Acting Secretary from October 1 to December 20, 2007. He was also the Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

More to Explore

• Administrator of Veterans Affairs
• Veterans Health Administration

See also

In Spanish: Secretario de Asuntos de los Veteranos de los Estados Unidos para niños