All the chattering classes have pretty much decided that should Mayor Julian Castro become HUD Secretary, he's all but guaranteed the Vice President slot on a presidential ticket led by Hillary Clinton.
So, we were wondering what about past Cabinet members?
At least 86 men and woman have gone on to some other elective office* after serving in a president's cabinet. *The term is used somewhat loosely since there was a time when for instance U.S. Senators weren't directly elected.
So which department has been the most popular position for appointees to leap from?
What might be thought of nowadays as the least political (in terms of domestic politics) for Cabinet Secretaries has seen the most success. But when you think about it, it's a pretty good spot to launch a for president from. 16 times a Secretary of State has gone on to elective office after serving in the Cabinet.
Thomas Jefferson: Vice President & President
Timothy Pickering: Massachusetts Senator & Congressman
James Madison: President
James Monroe: President
John Quincy Adams: President
Henry Clay: Kentucky Senator
Martin Van Buren: Vice President & President
John Calhoun: South Carolina Senator
James Buchanan: President
John Clayton: Delaware Senator
Edward Everett: Massachusetts Senator
Daniel Webster: Massachusetts Senator
William Evarts: New York Senator
Elihu Root: New York Senator
Philander Knox: Pennsylvania Senator
James Byrnes: South Carolina Governor
The next most popular is Attorney General. 13 men have gone on to elective office after.
Levi Lincoln: Massachusetts Lt. Gov. & Governor
William Pickney: Maryland Senator
Ceasar Rodney: Delaware Congressman & Senator
John Berrien: Georgia Senator
John Crittenden: Kentucky Senator (Crittenden did it twice. He was AG for William Henry Harrison & John Tyler then was a Kentucky Senator. Then he was AG for Millard Fillmore and then served again as a Kentucky Senator)
Reverdy Johnson: Maryland Senator
Isaac Toucey: Connecticut Senator
George Williams: Portland, OR Mayor
Ebenezer Hoar: Massachusetts Congressman
William Evarts: New York Senator
Judson Harmon: Ohio Governor
Philander Knox: Pennsylvania Senator
Robert Kennedy: New York Senator
After AG there's a 3 way tie. The positions of Treasury, Navy, & War each saw 12 men have a political career after their stint in the Cabinet. Navy and War later became Defense.
Only 1 woman has successfully made the leap: Elizabeth Dole (Transportation then Labor): North Carolina Senator.
If you're counting by presidents, John Tyler had 8 men in his Cabinet who went on to political careers afterwards. William Henry Harrison and Ulysses Grant each had 6. Zachary Taylor, Millard Fillmore, and James Madison each had 5.
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