Worldwide Guide to Women in Leadership
United States of America - Members of Cabinet  (Female suffrage 1922)   

For the rest of the members of the US administrations see 
United States of America Ministers

1952-53  Administrator of the Federal Agency of Welfare Oveta Culp Hobby
1953-55 Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare
Journalist, Editor, Publisher and 1942 Colonel in the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps. She lived (1905-95).

1973-75 Advisor of the President Anne Legendre Armstrong
Co-Chairperson of the National Republican Committee 1971-73, Ambassador to the United Kingdom 1975-77 . In question as vice-Presidential running-mate for President Ford in 1976. (b. 1927-)

1975-77 Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Carla Anderson Hills
1989-93 Trade Representative 
Assistant Attorney General 1974-75. (b. 1934-).

1977-79 Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Patricia Roberts Harris
1979    Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare
1979-81 Secretary of Health and Human Resources
In 1965-67 Ambassador to Luxembourg. First black first black ambassador. She lived (1924-85) 

1977-79 Secretary of Commerce Juanita Morris Kreps
An academic. She lived (1921-2010)

1979-81 Secretary of Education Shirley Mount Hufstedler
State and Federal Judge. (b. 1925-).

1981-85 U.N-Representative Jeanne Duane Jordan Kirkpatrick 
In question as vice-Presidential running-mate for Bush 1988. She lived (1926-2006)

1983-87 Secretary of Transportation Elizabeth Hanford Dole
1989-90 Secretary of Labour
In 1981-83 Assistant to the President for Public Liaison, 1990-99 President of Red Cross of USA, Married to former Senator Bob Dole, who was the Republican Presidential Candidate in 1996. In 1999 she was a candidate for the republican nomination for Presidential candidate but withdrew from the race. In 2002 she was elected Senator for New Carolina and two years later she became Chairperson of the National Republican Senatorial Committee. (b. 1936-)

1983-85 Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare Margaret M. O'Shaughnessy Heckler
Former Congress Member, Ambassador to Ireland 1984-89 (b. 1931-).

1987-89 Secretary of Labor Ann Dore McLaughlin
In1981-84 Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, 1984-87 Undersecretary of the Interior. (b. 1941-).

1991-93 Secretary of Commerce Barbara Hackman Barnes Franklin 
Academic and business leader (b. 1940-).

1991-93 Secretary of Labour Lynn Morley Martin
Former Member of the House of Representatives and Vice-Chairperson of the House Republican Conference, ran for U.S. Senate in Illinois in 1990 and Candidate for the Presidency of the National Republican Committee 1993. (b. 1939-)-

1993-2001  Attorney General Janet Reno
For many years District Attorney in Florida. In 2002 she lost the bid for the nomination as  Democrat Candidate for Governor. (Her father immigrated from Denmark and changed the family name from Rasmussen)(b. 1937-)

1993-2001 Secretary of Health and Human Resources Donna Shalala
Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development 1977-79. (b. 1941-)

1993-97 Secretary of Energy Hazel Reid Rollins O'Leary
Ca. 1970-74 Assistant Attorney General of New Jersey, 1977-78   Assistant Administrator of the Federal Environment Agency, Appointee for the Department of Energy in the Ford and Carter administrations. (b. 1937-)      

1993-97 U.N. Representative Madeleine Korbel Albright
1997-2001 Secretary of State (Foreign Minister)
Fourth in the Hierarchy of the Republic, after the President, Vice-President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives (b. 1937-) 

1993-95 C Chairperson of the Council of Economic Advisors Laura d'Andrea Tyson 
1995-97 Assistant to the President for National Economic Policy
Academic. (b. 1947-).

1993-2001 Administrator of the Environment Protection Agency Carol M. Browner
Head of the Florida Department of Environmental Regulation 1991-93. (b. 1955-).

1994-96 Director of Budget and Management Alice Mitchell Rivlin
Between 1963-69 Assistant Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare, 1975-83 Director of Congressional Budget Office, 1993-94Deputy Director of Budget of The White House, Vice-Chairperson of the Federal Revenue Board, The National Bank. (b. 1931-) 

1996-97 Acting Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky
1997-2001 Trade Representative 
Between 1993-96 Deputy US-Trade Representative She Took over the post after her predecessor, Michael Cantor, was chosen to succeed Secretary of Commerce, Rob Brown, who was killed in a plane crash together with a number of co-workers in Croatia. 

1997-2001 Secretary of Labor Alexis M. Herman
Between 1977-81 Director of the Women’s Bureau in the Department of Labour, 1991-92 Deputy Chairperson of the National Democratic Committee, 1993-97 Assistant to the President, Director of Public Liaison (b. 1947-)  

1997-2001 Director of the Office of Personnel Management Janice R. Lachance

2001-06 Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton
Attorney General of Colorado 1991-99. (b. 1954-).

2001-05 Secretary of Agriculture Anne M. Veneman
She was Deputy Undersecretary of Agriculture 1989-91 and  Deputy Secretary of Agriculture 1991-93, Secretary of  Agriculture of California 1996-98. (b. 1950-)

2001-09 Secretary of Labor Elaine Lan Chao
Deputy Secretary of Transportation 1989-92, Former Peace Corps and former President and leader of the United Way charitable organization. She is married to the Republican Senator Mitch McConnell from Kentucky. She is the first Asian-American woman in the Cabinet. (b. 1953-)

2001-03 Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency Christine Todd Whitman
Governor of New Jersey 1998-2001. She was reelected to the post in November 2000 but resigned in order to become member of the Federal Cabinet. (b. 1947-).

2001-05 National Security Advisor Dr. Condoleezza Rice
2003-04 Director of the Iraq Stabilization Group at the White House
2005-09 Secretary of State
She was Director of Soviet and East European Affairs in the National Security Council 1989-93. As Director of the Iraq Group she coordinated and oversaw the stateside element of the rebuilding projects while the direction of U.S. efforts on the ground in Iraq remained under the authority of Paul Bremer as the head of the Coalition Provisional Authority. (b. 1954-).

2003 Acting Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency Marianne Lamont Horniko
She was Assistant Administrator of Agency 2001-03.

2005-09 Scretary of Education Margaret Spellings
She was Presidential Domestic Policy Advisor from 2001 and 1995-2001 Advisor of the Governor of Texas both times for Georges Bush jr. (b. 1948-).

2006-09 Trade Representative Susan C. Schwab
Assistant Secretary of Commerce 1989-93, Ambassador and Deputy Trade Representative 2003-06

2006 Acting Secretary of Transoprtation Maria Cino
Until 2005 Deputy Chairman of the Republican National Committee, Assistant Secretary 2001-05 and Deputy Secretary of Transportation since 2005.

2006-09 Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters
Worked in the Office of the Arizona Department of Transportation for 16 years before she became its Director in 1999. Administrator of the Federal Highway Administration 2001-05, A year ago, Peters was exploring a candidacy for governor of Arizona. Last November, she dropped her gubernatorial bid to challenge Democratic incumbent Janet Napolitano after a fellow Republican, already in the race, raised questions about Peters' eligibility. In the Private sector from November 2005.

2009- Secretary of State Hilary Clinton
Politically Influential when her husband, Bill Clinton, was governor of Arkansas 1979-81 and 1983-1992 and President of USA 1993-2001, Senator for New York since 2001, Candidate in the Democratic Party Primary 2007-08 and designated to become Secretary of State in 2009. (b. 1947-).

2009- Ambassador to the United Nations Dr. Susan E. Rice
Special Assistant to the President, Senior Director of African Affairs 1993-97, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs 1997-2001 and university lecturer (b. 1964-)

2009- Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano
State Attorney-General 1998-2002 and Governor of Arizona from 2003. Designated to become Secretary of Homeland Security in 2009. (b. 1957-).

2008- Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis
California State Assembly 1992-96, State Senator 1996-2001 and Member of the US House of Representatives since 2001. (b. 1957-)

2009- Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sibelius
Governor of Kansas 2003-09

2008- Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency Lisa Jackson
Former Head of the Environmental Agency of New Jersey.

2011- Acting Secretary of Commerce Rebecca M. Blank
Under Secretary of Commerce since 2009.

Last update 11.08.11