President Biden will make many appointments and nominations to serve in various roles in the Department of Defense. These include the Army, Navy, Marines, and Air Force. Almost all of these nominations will need to be confirmed by the United States Senate before they can begin service. As was the case with Lloyd Austin, a waiver is required if the nominated person has not been out of service for at least seven years.
Below is a list of nominations and appointments to the Department of Defense by Joe Biden, the 46th president of the United States. , according to tracking by The Washington Post and Partnership for Public Service, 50 nominees have been confirmed, 3 nominees are being considered by the Senate, 10 positions do not have nominees, and 4 appointments have been made to positions that don't require Senate confirmation.
Color key Denotes appointees awaiting Senate confirmation.
Denotes appointees serving in an acting capacity.
Denotes appointees who have left office or offices which have been disbanded.
Department of Defense Office of the Secretary of Defense
Office Nominee Assumed office Left office —Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin January 22, 2021 — —Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks February 9, 2021 — —Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs Chris Meagher September 9, 2022 — John Kirby January 20, 2021 May 27, 2022Appointed to the National Security Council as coordinator for strategic communications —Department of Defense Press Secretary Patrick S. Ryder August 4, 2022 — —Chief of Staff to the Secretary of Defense Derek Chollet July 19, 2024 — Kelly Magsamen January 20, 2021 June 28, 2024 —Director of Administration and Management Michael B. Donley May 5, 2021 September 18, 2023 —General Counsel of Defense Caroline D. Krass August 2, 2021 — —Chief Information Officer of Defense Leslie Beavers July 1, 2024 — John Sherman December 17, 2021 June 28, 2024 —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Legislative Affairs) Rheanne Wirkkala December 2, 2022 — —Inspector General of Defense Robert Storch December 6, 2022 —
Joint Chiefs of Staff
Office Nominee Assumed office Left office —Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Charles Q. Brown Jr. October 1, 2023 — —Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Christopher W. Grady December 20, 2021 — —Chief of Staff of the Army Randy A. George September 21, 2023 — —Commandant of the Marine Corps Eric M. Smith September 22, 2023 — —Chief of Naval Operations Lisa M. Franchetti November 2, 2023 — —Chief of Staff of the Air Force David W. Allvin November 2, 2023 — —Chief of Space Operations B. Chance Saltzman November 2, 2022 — —Chief of the National Guard Bureau Steven Nordhaus October 2, 2024 —
Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Office Nominee Assumed office Left office —Under Secretary of Defense(Policy) Amanda J. Dory April 27, 2024 — Sasha Baker July 18, 2023 April 26, 2024 Colin Kahl April 28, 2021 July 17, 2023 —Deputy Under Secretary of Defense(Policy) Cara L. Abercrombie May 29, 2024 — Melissa Dalton April 26, 2024 May 29, 2024 Sasha Baker February 14, 2022 April 26, 2024 —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Cyber Policy) Michael Sulmeyer August 6, 2024defense.gov — —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Homeland Defense and Hemispheric Affairs) Rebecca Zimmerman May 29, 2024 — Melissa Dalton March 4, 2022 May 29, 2024 —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Indo-Pacific Security Affairs) Ely Ratner July 25, 2021 — —Assistant Secretary of Defense(International Security Affairs) Celeste Wallander February 22, 2022 — —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Space Policy) John D. Hill August 12, 2024 — Vipin Narang May 20, 2024 August 12, 2024 John F. Plumb March 7, 2022 May 20, 2024 —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict) Christopher Maier August 12, 2021 — —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Strategy, Plans, and Capabilities) Madeline Mortelmans December 20, 2023 — Mara Karlin August 23, 2021 December 20, 2023
Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller) Office Nominee Assumed office Left office —Under Secretary of Defense(Comptroller)Chief Financial Officer of Defense Michael J. McCordJune 2, 2021 — —Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense(Comptroller) Kathleen Miller August 20, 2021 —
Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment Office Nominee Assumed office Left office —Under Secretary of Defense(Acquisition and Sustainment) William A. LaPlante April 15, 2022 — —Deputy Under Secretary of Defense(Acquisition and Sustainment) Deborah Rosenblum April 8, 2024 — Radha Iyengar Plumb April 21, 2023 April 8, 2024 —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Acquisition) Cara L. Abercrombie March 5, 2024 — —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Energy, Installations and Environment) Brendan Owens January 26, 2023 — —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Industrial Base Policy) Laura D. Taylor-Kale April 11, 2023 — —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Defense Programs) Brandi Vann April 8, 2024 — Deborah Rosenblum August 4, 2021 April 8, 2024 —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Sustainment) Steven J. Morani September 30, 2024 — Christopher Lowman June 10, 2022 September 30, 2024
Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security Office Nominee Assumed office Left office —Under Secretary of Defense(Intelligence and Security) Milancy Harris March 1, 2024 — Ronald Moultrie June 1, 2021 February 29, 2024 —Deputy Under Secretary of Defense(Intelligence and Security) Milancy Harris January 3, 2023 March 1, 2024
Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Office Nominee Assumed office Left office—Under Secretary of Defense(Personnel and Readiness) Ashish Vazirani September 8, 2023 — Gil Cisneros August 24, 2021 September 8, 2023 —Deputy Under Secretary of Defense(Personnel and Readiness) Ashish Vazirani July 18, 2022 — —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Health Affairs) Lester Martínez López March 1, 2023 October 31, 2024 —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Manpower and Reserve Affairs) Ronald Keohane March 13, 2024 — —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Readiness) Shawn Skelly July 22, 2021 –
Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Office Nominee Assumed office Left office —Under Secretary of Defense(Research and Engineering) Heidi Shyu July 25, 2021 — —Deputy Under Secretary of Defense(Research and Engineering) David A. Honey March 1, 2022 — —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Science and Technology) Aprille Ericsson March 29, 2024 —
Offices & Agencies Office Nominee Assumed office Left office Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation Directorate —Director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation Susanna Blume August 5, 2021 — Operational Test and Evaluation Directorate —Director of Operational Test and Evaluation Douglas C. Schmidt April 8, 2024 — Nickolas Guertin December 20, 2021 December 20, 2023 Permanent Joint Board on Defense—Chair of the United States Section of thePermanent Joint Board on Defense for the United States and Canada Melissa Dalton October 27, 2022 — National Reconnaissance Office —Inspector General of the National Reconnaissance Office Terrence Edwards December 28, 2022 —
Department of the Army
Office Nominee Assumed office Left office —Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth May 28, 2021 — —Under Secretary of the Army Gabe Camarillo February 8, 2022 — —General Counsel of the Army Carrie Ricci January 3, 2022 — —Assistant Secretary of the Army(Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology) Douglas R. Bush February 11, 2022 — —Assistant Secretary of the Army(Civil Works) Michael L. Connor November 29, 2021 — —Assistant Secretary of the Army(Financial Management and Comptroller) Caral Spangler August 17, 2021 — —Assistant Secretary of the Army(Installations, Energy and Environment) Rachel Jacobson April 4, 2022 — —Assistant Secretary of the Army(Manpower and Reserve Affairs) Agnes Schaefer December 23, 2022 —
Department of the Navy
Office Nominee Assumed office Left office —Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro August 9, 2021 — —Under Secretary of the Navy Thomas Mancinelli August 20, 2024navy.mil — Erik Raven April 13, 2022 August 1, 2024 —General Counsel of the Navy Sean Coffey February 16, 2022 — —Assistant Secretary of the Navy(Manpower and Reserve Affairs) Franklin Parker January 18, 2023 — —Assistant Secretary of the Navy(Energy, Installations and Environment) Meredith Berger August 5, 2021 — —Assistant Secretary of the Navy(Financial Management and Comptroller) Russell Rumbaugh January 3, 2023 — —Assistant Secretary of the Navy(Research, Development and Acquisition) Nickolas Guertin December 20, 2023 —
Department of the Air Force
Office Nominee Assumed office Left office —Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall III July 28, 2021 ——Under Secretary of the Air Force Melissa Dalton May 29, 2024 – Kristyn E. Jones March 6, 2023 May 29, 2024 Gina Ortiz Jones July 26, 2021 March 6, 2023 —General Counsel of the Air Force Peter Beshar March 18, 2022 — —Assistant Secretary of the Air Force(Acquisition, Technology and Logistics) Andrew P. Hunter February 7, 2022 — —Assistant Secretary of the Air Force(Financial Management & Comptroller) Kristyn E. Jones May 4, 2022 July 10, 2024 —Assistant Secretary of the Air Force(Installations, Environment & Energy) Ravi Chaudhary April 7, 2023 — —Assistant Secretary of the Air Force(Manpower & Reserve Affairs) Alex Wagner June 10, 2022 — —Assistant Secretary of the Air Force(Space Acquisition and Integration) Frank Calvelli May 5, 2022 —
Withdrawn nominations Office Nominee Announced Withdrawn Notes —Under Secretary of Defense(Acquisition and Sustainment) Michael Brown April 2, 2021 July 20, 2021 —Assistant Secretary of Defense(Manpower and Reserve Affairs) Brenda Sue Fulton April 23, 2021 September 29, 2022 —Under Secretary of Defense(Policy) Derek Chollet July 25, 2023 January 3, 2025 —Under Secretary of Defense(Intelligence and Security) Tonya P. Wilkerson May 2, 2024 January 3, 2025 —Inspector General of the National Security Agency Kristi Lane Scott July 31, 2024 January 3, 2025
See also Cabinet of Joe Biden, for the vetting process undergone by top-level roles including advice and consent by the Senate List of executive branch 'czars' e.g. Special Advisor to the President
Notes
Confirmations by roll call vote
Confirmations by voice vote
References