This is a list ofspouses of Vietnamese leaders, including spouses of theGeneral Secretaries of the Communist Party (Vietnamese:Phu nhân Tổng bí thư) and spouses of thePresidents of Vietnam (Vietnamese:Phu nhân Chủ tịch nước).
These roles was never established or recognized as an official title or office, but they often play an important ceremonial role alongside the officeholder.[1][2] Depending on the prominence of the officeholder and their spouse, the latter may be informally referred to as theFirst Lady of Vietnam (Vietnamese:Đệ nhất Phu nhân Việt Nam).Ngô Phương Ly has been considered thede facto First Lady of Vietnam sinceTô Lâm's election as General Secretary in August 2024.[3]
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| Spouse of the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Style | Her Excellency Madam |
| Status | de facto |
| Residence | 64 Phan Đình Phùng street,Ba Đình,Hanoi |
| Unofficial names | First Lady of Vietnam |
The highest position inVietnam's political system is theGeneral Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam and the spouse of the officeholder is considered thede facto "First Lady of Vietnam".[3]
The list only includes spouses of General Secretaries who served after the1951 re-establishment of the Worker's Party of Vietnam (predecessor of theCommunist Party of Vietnam), following which it formally became the ruling party ofNorth Vietnam and later reunified Vietnam.
| No. | Portrait | Name (Birth–Death) | Tenure began | Tenure ended | General Secretary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Nguyễn Thị Minh (1912–2001) | 19 February 1951 | 5 October 1956 | Trường Chinh (1907–1988) |
| - | Vacant[a] | 5 October 1956 | 10 September 1960 | Hồ Chí Minh (1890–1969) | |
| 2 | | Lê Thị Sương (?–?) | 10 September 1960 | 10 July 1986 | Lê Duẩn (1907–1986) |
| - | | Nguyễn Thụy Nga[b] (1925–2018) | |||
| (1) | | Nguyễn Thị Minh (1912–2001) | 14 July 1986 | 18 December 1986 | Trường Chinh (1907–1988) |
| 3 | | Ngô Thị Huệ (1918–2022) | 18 December 1986 | 28 June 1991 | Nguyễn Văn Linh (1915–1998) |
| 4 | | Tạ Thị Thanh (?–?) | 28 June 1991 | 26 December 1997 | Đỗ Mười (1917–2018) |
| 5 | | Nguyễn Thị Bích (?–?) | 26 December 1997 | 22 April 2001 | Lê Khả Phiêu (1932–2020)[5] |
| 6 | | Lý Thị Bang (1942-2010) | 22 April 2001 | 24 October 2010† | Nông Đức Mạnh (born 1939[6]) |
| - | Vacant | 24 October 2010 | 19 January 2011 | ||
| 7 |  | Ngô Thị Mân[7] 1949 – | 19 January 2011 | 19 July 2024 | Nguyễn Phú Trọng (1944–2024) |
| 8 | | Ngô Phương Ly 1970 – | 3 August 2024 | Incumbent | |
| Tô Lâm (born 1956[8]) | |||||
| Spouse of the president of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Style | Her Excellency[9] Madam[10] |
| Status | de facto |
| Residence | Presidential Palace, Hanoi |
| Inaugural holder | Đoàn Thị Giàu |
| Formation | 2 September 1969; 56 years ago (1969-09-02) |
| Unofficial names | First Lady of Vietnam |
| Salary | Undisclosed |
| Website | Office of the President |
There have been 12[c] people holding this title since 1969.[d] The current spouse of the president since October 2024 isNguyễn Thị Minh Nguyệt, the wife of incumbent PresidentLương Cường.
The role of the president's spouse is not an official position, and so they are not given a salary or official duties. Nonetheless, the spouse usually participates in humanitarian and charitable work, and accompanies the president in state visits and entertaining foreign leaders.
| No. | Portrait | Name | Tenure began | Tenure ended | President |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spouses of the president of theDemocratic Republic of Vietnam | |||||
| — | Vacant[e] | 2 September 1945 | 2 September 1969 | Hồ Chí Minh | |
| — | | Nguyễn Thị Sắt[11] 1881 – 1953 | 29 May 1946 | 21 October 1946 | Huỳnh Thúc Kháng (Acting) |
| 1 | .jpg) | Đoàn Thị Giàu[1] 1898 – 1974 | 2 September 1969 | 25 May 1974† | Tôn Đức Thắng |
| — | Vacant | 25 May 1974 | 2 July 1976 | ||
| Spouses of the president of theSocialist Republic of Vietnam | |||||
| — | Vacant | 2 July 1976 | 30 March 1980 | Tôn Đức Thắng | |
| — | | Dương Thị Chung 1922 – 2018 | 30 March 1980 | 4 July 1981 | Nguyễn Hữu Thọ |
| Spouses of the chairman of theCouncil of State of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam | |||||
| 2 | | Nguyễn Thị Minh 1912 – ? | 4 July 1981 | 18 June 1987 | Trường Chinh |
| 3 | | Phan Thị Nể ? – ? | 18 June 1987 | 22 September 1992 | Võ Chí Công |
| Spouses of the president of theSocialist Republic of Vietnam | |||||
| 4 | | Võ Thị Lê 1928 – 2016 | 23 September 1992 | 24 September 1997 | Lê Đức Anh |
| 5 | | Nguyễn Thị Vinh ? – | 24 September 1997 | 27 June 2006 | Trần Đức Lương |
| 6 | .jpg) | Trần Thị Kim Chi[12] ? – | 27 June 2006 | 25 July 2011 | Nguyễn Minh Triết |
| 7 | .jpg) | Mai Thị Hạnh[13] 1956 – | 25 July 2011 | 2 April 2016 | Trương Tấn Sang |
| 8 |  | Nguyễn Thị Hiền[14] 1958 – | 2 April 2016 | 21 September 2018 | Trần Đại Quang† |
| — | Vacant[f] | 21 September 2018 | 23 October 2018 | Đặng Thị Ngọc Thịnh (Acting) | |
| 9 | | Ngô Thị Mân[7] 1949 – | 23 October 2018 | 5 April 2021 | Nguyễn Phú Trọng |
| 10 |  | Trần Thị Nguyệt Thu[15] 1956 – | 5 April 2021 | 18 January 2023 | Nguyễn Xuân Phúc |
| — | Vacant[g] | 18 January 2023 | 2 March 2023 | Võ Thị Ánh Xuân (Acting) | |
| 11 |  | Phan Thị Thanh Tâm[16] ? – | 2 March 2023 | 21 March 2024 | Võ Văn Thưởng |
| — | Vacant[h] | 21 March 2024 | 22 May 2024 | Võ Thị Ánh Xuân (Acting) | |
| 12 | | Ngô Phương Ly 1970 – | 22 May 2024 | 21 October 2024 | Tô Lâm |
| 13 | | Nguyễn Thị Minh Nguyệt ? – | 21 October 2024 | Incumbent | Lương Cường |
| First Lady of South Vietnam | |
|---|---|
| Residence | Independence Palace,Saigon (nowHo Chi Minh City) |
| Inaugural holder | Trần Lệ Xuân |
| Formation | 26 October 1955; 70 years ago (1955-10-26) |
| Abolished | 30 April 1975; 50 years ago (1975-04-30) |
The spouse of thePresident of South Vietnam is informally referred to as theFirst Lady.[i]
| No. | Portrait | Name | Tenure began | Tenure ended | President |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | .jpg) | Trần Lệ Xuân[j] Madame Nhu 1924 – 2011 | 26 October 1955 | 2 November 1963 | Ngô Đình Diệm |
| — | Vacant | 2 November 1963 | 31 October 1967 | Military junta | |
| 2 |  | Nguyễn Thị Mai Anh Madame Nguyễn Văn Thiệu 1930 – 2021 | 31 October 1967 | 21 April 1975 | Nguyễn Văn Thiệu |
| 3 | | Lưu Thị Triệu Madame Trần Văn Hương 1900 – ? | 21 April 1975 | 28 April 1975 | Trần Văn Hương |
| — | Vacant | 28 April 1975 | 30 April 1975 | Dương Văn Minh | |
| Second Lady of South Vietnam | |
|---|---|
| Residence | Independence Palace,Saigon (nowHo Chi Minh City) |
| Inaugural holder | Đặng Tuyết Mai |
| Formation | 31 October 1967; 58 years ago (1967-10-31) |
| Abolished | 30 April 1975; 50 years ago (1975-04-30) |
The spouse of theVice President of South Vietnam is informally referred to as theSecond Lady.
| No. | Portrait | Name | Tenure began | Tenure ended | Vice President |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | Vacant | 18 December 1956 | 2 November 1963 | Nguyễn Ngọc Thơ | |
| — | Vacant | 2 November 1963 | 31 October 1967 | Military junta | |
| 1 |  | Đặng Tuyết Mai Madame Nguyễn Cao Kỳ 1941 – 2016 | 31 October 1967 | 29 October 1971 | Nguyễn Cao Kỳ |
| 2 | | Lưu Thị Triệu Madame Trần Văn Hương 1900 – ? | 31 October 1971 | 21 April 1975 | Trần Văn Hương |
| — | Vacant | 21 April 1975 | 30 April 1975 | Nguyễn Văn Huyền | |
Mrs Hurley and Her Excellency Phan Thi Thanh Tam are welcomed by schoolchildren at the Presidential Palace