Previous designated survivors have included Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona in 2024, Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh in 2023 and Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo in 2022.

The practice of tapping a "survivor" from the presidential line of succession is believed to date back to the Cold War.

One chair inside the U.S. Capitol will be empty on Tuesday night at President Donald Trump delivers his State of the Union address. The cabinet member who typically occupies it will be nowhere near ...

WASHINGTON D.C., DC — When President Donald Trump delivers the first State of the Union address of his second term Tuesday night, one of his Cabinet secretaries will be named the “designated survivor.