14 Women In The Running For Joe Biden’s Cabinet

Before serving as a California congresswoman, Bass worked for almost a decade as a physician assistant. Her health care background is one of reasons that The New York Times considers her a possibility for the secretary of health and human services. Throughout her decade in the U.S. House, Bass — who leads the Congressional Black Caucus and was considered to be Biden's running mate — has focused on issues of race and income inequality.

Another pull from Biden’s list of VP contenders, the Atlanta mayor made headlines during June's Black Lives Matter movement for being outspoken on racial justice issues. Since winning the mayoral election in 2017, Lance Bottoms has prioritized affordable housing. Prior to her current role, she served as a judge and as an Atlanta city councilwoman.

Before serving as a Florida congresswoman, the former Orlando police chief had a 27-year career in law enforcement. In the House, Demings — another VP contender — has served on several committees and caucuses related to security and intelligence.

Sen. Duckworth is an Army veteran who served in the Iraq War. In addition to her combat experience, the Illinois congresswoman is a longtime advocate for veterans affairs. (Like the women above, she was also on Biden’s list of potential running mates.) If nominated, she’d be the first Thai American in the Cabinet and the first woman to serve as secretary of defense.

Flournoy is a Washington D.C. mainstay, having served as deputy assistant secretary of defense under President Bill Clinton and as under secretary of defense for policy under President Obama. (In the latter role, she was the highest-ranking woman in the Pentagon.) If nominated, which The New York Times sees as likely, the Harvard alumna would be the first woman to serve as secretary of defense.

For two decades, García worked as an elementary school teacher in Utah, having entered schools originally as a lunch lady. After an unsuccessful congressional run in 1998, she cemented her career in education advocacy and reform, ultimately serving as the president of the National Education Association. Politico has called her a favorite for this role, alongside leaders in the field such as Randi Weingarten and Linda Darling-Hammond.

When she was elected to the House in 2018, the New Mexico representative became one of the first Native American women elected to Congress. Haaland, who's already told the Huffington Post that she’d gladly take the role if offered, is the vice chairwoman of the House of Natural Resources Committee. The Department of the Interior oversees land conservation and heritage programs. "The symbolism alone, yes, it’s profound,” she told the Huffington Post about the significance of an Indigenous woman in such a role.

Haines was the first woman to serve as deputy CIA director, which she did starting in 2013. But the accomplished academic had a roundabout path to politics: She studied physics in undergrad and then founded and ran a bookstore cafe for five years, ultimately completing law school at Georgetown University and clerking in the U.S. Court of Appeals.

Before serving North Dakota in Congress, the one-term senator worked for the Environmental Protection Agency and served as North Dakota's attorney general. While in office, she served on the Agriculture Committee and helped pass two farm bills through Congress. Since then, she founded the One Country Project, which aims to better connect politicians with rural communities.

Sen. Klobuchar is another contender to lead the Department of Agriculture. (The New York Times reports she’s also a contender for attorney general.) In Congress, the Minnesotan has advocated for rural communities, and as she ran against Biden for the Democratic nomination, she’s already familiar with his platform and policies.

Rice is a leading contender to be Biden’s secretary of state, having also been on his VP shortlist. She was a national security adviser for President Obama, and is considered an experienced diplomat and an expert on foreign policy. (Her involvement in the 2012 Benghazi tragedy, in which four Americans were killed, could invite scrutiny to the pick.)

During the Obama administration, Sherwood-Randall served as deputy secretary of energy, a step up from previous White House roles in the Obama and Clinton administrations, such as an adviser on weapons of mass destruction and arms control, and a deputy assistant secretary of defense. She knows Biden well, having been his chief adviser on foreign and defense policy right out of grad school at Oxford University, where she was a Rhodes Scholar.

It’s no surprise that Sen. Warren, a progressive favorite who ran against Biden for the Democratic nomination, is a Cabinet prospect. Politico reports that Warren, a staunch advocate for economic equality, wants the job, in part because it would allow her to implement some of the economic reform she campaigned on during her presidential bid.

When President Trump took office, Yates was the acting attorney general but lasted just 10 days. In January 2017, she was fired for refusing to defend Trump’s "Muslim ban." (In an internal memo, she said she wasn't convinced it was a "lawful" order.) A White House news release accused Yates, an Obama appointee, of "betraying" the Department of Justice.