Sean Duffy | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2025 | |
| 20thUnited States Secretary of Transportation | |
| Assumed office January 28, 2025 | |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Deputy | Steven G. Bradbury |
| Preceded by | Pete Buttigieg |
| Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration | |
Acting | |
| Assumed office July 9, 2025 | |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Janet Petro (acting) |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromWisconsin's7th district | |
| In office January 3, 2011 – September 23, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Dave Obey |
| Succeeded by | Tom Tiffany |
| District Attorney ofAshland County | |
| In office August 1, 2002 – July 9, 2010 | |
| Appointed by | Scott McCallum |
| Preceded by | Michael Gableman |
| Succeeded by | Kelly McKnight |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Sean Patrick Duffy (1971-10-03)October 3, 1971 (age 54) Hayward, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 9 |
| Relatives | Leah Campos (sister-in-law) Erik Johnson (nephew) |
| Education | |
Sean Patrick Duffy (born October 3, 1971) is an American politician, attorney, and former television presenter serving as the 20thU.S. secretary of transportation since January 2025. Duffy has also served as the actingadministrator of NASA since July 2025. A member of theRepublican Party, he previously served as theU.S. representative forWisconsin's 7th congressional district from 2011 to 2019 and asDistrict Attorney ofAshland County from 2002 to 2010.
Born inHayward, Wisconsin, Duffy was a professional lumberjack, competing in the city'sLumberjack World Championship for several years and winning multiple titles inspeed climbing. In 1997, he appeared onThe Real World: Boston. As a lumberjack, he competed inESPN'sGreat Outdoor Games and was a commentator for the games. Duffy graduated fromSt. Mary's College of Minnesota with a degree in marketing and from theWilliam Mitchell College of Law in 1999. He worked at his father's law practice for two years before serving as a special prosecutor forAshland County. In 2002, Duffy was appointed by Wisconsin governorScott McCallum as the district attorney of Ashland County, serving in the position until 2010.
In July 2009, Duffy announced that he would challengeDemocratic U.S. representativeDave Obey. He defeated state senatorJulie Lassa, a Democrat who won the nomination after Obey announced he would not run for re-election, in the2010 election for Wisconsin's seventh congressional district. Duffy was re-elected in2012,2014,2016, and2018. Duffy resigned from Congress in September 2019 following his newborn daughter's health complications. After leavingCongress, Duffy worked for the consulting firmBGR Group. He began co-hostingFox Business'sThe Bottom Line withDagen McDowell in 2023.
On November 18, 2024, President-electDonald Trump announced his intent to nominate Duffy for U.S. secretary of transportation. Duffy was confirmed by the U.S.Senate on January 28, 2025. In July 2025, Duffy was named as the acting administrator ofNASA, succeedingJanet Petro.
Sean Patrick Duffy was born on October 3, 1971,[1] inHayward, Wisconsin.[2] Duffy was the tenth child of Tom and Carol Duffy.[3] He was raised in anIrish AmericanCatholic family, several members of which participated in and won Hayward's annualLumberjack World Championships.[4] Duffy, inspired by his siblings, beganlogrolling when he was five.[2] He attendedHayward High School,[3] where he played as adefenseman for the school's hockey team.[5] He beganspeed climbing when he was fifteen.[6] Duffy continued lumberjacking after high school,[7] winning a tree climbing title at the 1993Mississippi River Log Boom.[8] His speed climbing technique involved reckless movement; Fred Scheer compared Duffy to a "race-car driver who bumps the wall now and then".[9] Duffy was the world champion speed climber at the 1994 Lumberjack World Championship.[10]
He graduated fromSaint Mary's University of Minnesota with aB.A degree in marketing in 1994[11] and worked for Scheer's Lumberjack Shows in the summers.[12] By June 1997,The New York Times Magazine considered Duffy one of the top American lumberjacks at that time.[9] He later graduated from theWilliam Mitchell College of Law with aJ.D. degree in 1999.[13] Duffy's nephew isErik Johnson, the longtimeColorado Avalanche defenseman who was the first overall pick in the2006 NHL entry draft.[14]
In 1997, Duffy auditioned forThe Real World: Boston, the sixth iteration ofMTV'sThe Real World set inBoston,Massachusetts, and became a cast member by July.[15] In his audition, Duffy said that he was interested in "cute girls"; his role on the show was described byThe New York Times as a "resident playboy".[4] The series completed filming in December, though Duffy would begin filming forRoad Rules: All Stars (1998) that month, necessitating him to delay another semester of law school.[16] On the set ofRoad Rules, he metRachel Campos. The two married in April 1999 at theNewman Center atArizona State University located withinOld St. Mary's Church; though they planned to wed later that year, Campos's unexpected pregnancy expedited their wedding.[17] The two have nine children together.[4] In 2002, Duffy appeared in and wonReal World/Road Rules Challenge: Battle of the Seasons. He competed in theGreat Outdoor Games's competitions for log rolling in 2000 and 2001 and for speed climbing from 2000 to 2002. In 2003, Duffy was named as a commentator for theGreat Outdoor Games.[18] He was named as the honorary athlete for the 2004Badger State Winter Games.[19] Duffy competed in the speed climbing competition for theGreat Outdoor Games in 2005.[6] Additionally, he was a commentator for the mixed doubles Boom Run.[20]
After graduating from law school in 1999, Duffy worked for his father's practice for two years before becoming a special prosecutor forAshland County.[11] In June 2002,Wisconsin governorScott McCallum appointed Duffy as the district attorney of Ashland County followingMichael Gableman's resignation. Duffy toldThe Post-Crescent that he intended to run for a complete term in that year's election.[21] He ran unopposed in that year's election[22] and the 2004 election.[23] Duffy served as a Wisconsin delegate in the2004 Republican National Convention[23] and the2004 presidential election.[24] In May 2005, Wisconsin's Federal Nominating Commission forwarded four candidates, including Duffy, to succeedJ. B. Van Hollen as theUnited States attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin.[25] Duffy was re-elected in 2006 and 2008.[26] As district attorney, he had a ninety percent conviction rate.[27]
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In June 2003, Duffy stated that he was considering challenging representativeDave Obey, who had served as theUnited States representative forWisconsin's seventh congressional district since 1969, as aRepublican in the2004 election.[22] In February 2004, he declined to challenge Obey, citing Rachel's expected third child.[28] In July 2009, Duffy indicated he would run for representative.[29] On July 9, atWausau Homes inRothschild,[30] Duffy announced that he would challenge Obey in the2010 election.[31] He later toldThe New York Times that he decided to challenge Obey, then the chair of theHouse Committee on Appropriations, over his position in strengthening government, particularly his role in theAmerican Recovery and Reinvestment Act andhealthcare reforms proposed during the Obama administration.[26]
Finance filings released by Duffy's campaign in October revealed that he had accrued relatively fewer donations than Obey, though Duffy had not taken money frompolitical action committees. The achievement made the campaign eligible for theNational Republican Congressional Committee's Young Guns program, giving it further funding.[32] The Duffy campaign hitUS$300,000 in January 2010, setting a record.[27] Duffy received endorsements from formerAlaska governorSarah Palin[33] and the Seventh Congressional District Republican Party through a caucus it held.[34] In May 2010, Obey announced that he would not be running for re-election.[35] The following day, the Duffy campaign was promoted within the Young Guns program, further unlocking additional financial resources.[36] By that month, Duffy had been expected to advance to the general election.[37] In September, Duffy defeated Dan Mielke in the Republican primary.[38] Duffy defeatedJulie Lassa to win the general election in November.[39]
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Duffy spoke at the 2011Conservative Political Action Conference, focusing his talk on "cutting spending by the spenders".[40] He criticizedearmarks in his campaign, though he later expressed a willingness to secure necessary financing.[41] His critics labeled a measure to construct theSt. Croix Crossing as an earmark; Duffy disputed that label.[42] Duffy expressed reservations overan effort to repeal sections of theAffordable Care Act, but voted with Republicans amid a reassurance of a replacement from House majority whipKevin McCarthy. He voted against a bill that would defundNPR, citing his constituent's use of public radio.[43] In June 2011, theWisconsin State Assembly approved a congressional map that would politically benefit Duffy[44] with the intention of securing his seat.[45] He was re-elected in2012,[46]2014,[47]2016,[48] and2018.[49]
After being initially sworn in, Duffy was named to theHouse Committee on Financial Services.[50] In November 2014, he was named as the chairman of theFinancial Services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.[51] In October 2015, Duffy was named to theHouse Select Investigative Panel on Planned Parenthood.[52] A proposed bill by Duffy in July 2011 would have installed a five-member oversight panel to control theConsumer Financial Protection Bureau and would have given Congress greater authority to overturn the bureau's regulations.[53] He praised theBudget Control Act to resolve the2011 debt-ceiling crisis as an act of bipartisanship.[54] In April 2016, he introduced thePuerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act to resolve thePuerto Rican government-debt crisis.[55] Duffy proposed a bill in January 2019 that would have expanded presidential tariff authority.[56] Duffy spoke at the2012 Republican National Convention—despite an overall lessened prominence from House Republicans at the convention that year,[57] the2016 Republican National Convention,[58] and the2020 Republican National Convention.[59] Duffy startedPlaidcast (2017–2019) in 2017, among several members of Congress who started a podcast that year.[60]
On August 26, 2019, Duffy announced that he would resign over complications involving his ninth child who had not been born yet. His resignation was effective on September 23.[61]Rachel Campos-Duffy gave birth in October. Campos-Duffy stated that the child had "two holes in the heart and valves that need to be fixed", as well asDown syndrome.[62] Duffy's resignation led toa special election; RepublicanTom Tiffany won the election, defeating Democrat Tricia Zunker.[63]
In October 2019,CNN hired Duffy as a paid contributor. He faced criticism for defendingDonald Trump ina scandal involving aquid pro quo with Ukrainian presidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy and suggesting that aDemocratic National Committee server had gone missing inUkraine.Jeffrey Toobin, a legal contributor to the network, rebuked Duffy for his "anti-immigrant bigotry" after he described the whistleblowerAlexander Vindman as loyal to Ukraine. CNN's vice president,Rebecca Kutler, defended Duffy.[64] In November, he joinedBGR Group as a senior counsel leading its financial services practice.[65] He was registered to lobby until 2023, when he joined the firm's advisory board, remaining on the board until he was named as Trump'ssecretary of transportation. Duffy represented various clients, includingEnterprise Products and the Partnership for Fair and Open Skies.[66] In 2021, Duffy and his wife,Rachel Campos-Duffy, began a podcast,From the Kitchen Table: The Duffys (2021–2024).[4] He began co-hostingFox Business'sThe Bottom Line withDagen McDowell in 2023.[67]
In August 2021, the Duffys purchased a home inFar Hills, New Jersey under aprincipal residence mortgage and subsequently purchased a second home inWashington, D.C. under a principal residence mortgage in February 2025.[68]
On November 18, 2024, President-elect Donald Trump announced his intention to nominate Duffy for U.S. Secretary of Transportation.[69] Duffy appeared before theSenate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation on January 15 in a notably non-contentious hearing that focused on aviation safety and infrastructure. Duffy stated before the committee that he would clear bureaucratic efforts to advance critical infrastructure projects and that he would increase the number of air traffic controllers.[70] The Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation voted to advance his nomination 28–0 on January 22.[71]
The U.S. Senate voted to confirm Duffy on January 28, 2025 in a 77–22 vote; protestinga federal grant pause, severalDemocrats voted against Duffy.[72] Duffy was sworn into office that same day bySupreme Court justiceClarence Thomas.[73]
In one of his initial acts as secretary, Duffy moved to revertcorporate average fuel economy standards set by his predecessor,Pete Buttigieg.[74] He issued a directive prioritizing high-birthrate areas—predominantlyRepublican states—for federal assistance[75] and additionally sought to restrict transportation funding from local governments that do not comply with Trump'simmigration policy.[76] The following day, a passenger jetcollided with aUnited States Army helicopter over thePotomac River in Duffy's first crisis.[77] In the aftermath of the incident, Duffy directed theFederal Aviation Administration to restrict two helicopter routes nearRonald Reagan Washington National Airport.[78] Following the incident, he repeated Trump's assertion that the apparent failure of air traffic controllers to avert the collision was a result ofdiversity, equity, and inclusion hiring practices.[79] Days later, the Federal Aviation Administration'sNOTAM systems experienced a temporary outage, leading to flight delays.[80] The effort to keep air traffic controllers came with a pay increase.[81] Additionally, Duffy continued theDepartment of Transportation's oversight ofBoeing.[82]
Duffy's work intersected with theDepartment of Government Efficiency andElon Musk's activities within the federal government, including efforts to force federal employees to resign. He rejected theOffice of Personnel Management's early retirement offer for "critical positions in regard to safety", including air traffic controllers.[83] After Musk stated that the Department of Government Efficiency would assess outdated aviation technology, Duffy confirmed that he had agreed to improve internal systems. SenatorMaria Cantwell, the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, sent a letter to Duffy in response that urged him to dissociate Musk with the Federal Aviation Administration;[84] in February, Duffy said onX thatSpaceX officials would be visiting the agency.[85] The following month,The New York Times reported on a meeting between Duffy and Musk in which Duffy criticized the Department of Government Efficiency for purportedly attempting to fire air traffic controllers.[86]
In February, Duffy sent a letter toNew York governorKathy Hochul objecting tocongestion pricing in New York City and stating his intention to revoke the program's federal approval.[87] His campaign to end the program involved a social media video featuring five men displeased with congestion pricing.[88] Duffy later delayed New York's deadline to end the program hours before it was originally set.[89] By April, the U.S. Department of Transportation had begun put pressure New York to end congestion pricing after an agreement with New York transit officials stayed the program.[90] That month, Duffy announced that the federal government would assume control ofPennsylvania Station.[91] In addition, he threatened to withhold federal funding from theMetropolitan Transportation Authority oversubway crime, risking the city'sUS$14 billion effort to improve transit that depends on federal assistance.[92] Duffy cut federal funding for theTexas Central Railway in April[93] andCalifornia High-Speed Rail in June.[94]
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On May 2, Duffy eliminated $54 million in university research grants that he considered "woke" and "wasteful and divisive."[95]
On July 1, 2025, Duffy directed state governors to remove non-standard and distracting road markings from roadways, intersections, and crosswalks. Duffy stated that road markings must be standardized for safety, and should not be used for political or artistic messaging. He issued the directive under the Federal Highway Administration's "SAFE ROADS" initiative, which focuses on reducing traffic fatalities on arterial roads.[96]
On July 9, 2025, President Trump named Duffy as the actingadministrator of NASA, succeeding acting administratorJanet Petro.[97]
Duffy has rejected being a member of theTea Party movement, though he has praised the movement and an associated figure, the conservative political commentatorGlenn Beck.[98] In an op-ed forThe Washington Times a year after the passage of theDodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, he critically reviewed its impact as "woefully under-delivered".[99] Duffy has criticized the federal government's response toclimate change as an "agenda of control" and has questioned the scientific consensus of climate change.[100]
In September 2025, Duffy publicly blamedCharlotte city officials for thekilling of Iryna Zarutska.[101]
At theParis Air Show in June 2025, Duffy advocated for free trade in aerospace.[102]
In December 2021, Duffy co-authoredAll American Christmas with his wife,Rachel Campos-Duffy.[103]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Sean Duffy | 41,032 | 66.1 | |
| Republican | Dan Mielke | 21,100 | 33.9 | |
| Total votes | 62,132 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Sean Duffy | 132,551 | 52.2 | |
| Democratic | Julie Lassa | 113,018 | 44.5 | |
| Independent | Gary Kauther | 8,397 | 3.3 | |
| Total votes | 253,966 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Sean Duffy | 201,318 | 56.1 | |
| Democratic | Pat Kreitlow | 157,340 | 43.9 | |
| Total votes | 358,658 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Sean Duffy | 26,062 | 87.9 | |
| Republican | Don Raihala | 3,574 | 12.1 | |
| Total votes | 29,636 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Sean Duffy | 169,451 | 59.2 | |
| Democratic | Kelly Westlund | 112,895 | 39.5 | |
| Independent | Lawrence Dale | 3,661 | 1.3 | |
| Total votes | 286,007 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Sean Duffy | 223,418 | 61.7 | |
| Democratic | Mary Hoeft | 138,643 | 38.3 | |
| Total votes | 362,061 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Sean Duffy | 194,061 | 60.1 | |
| Democratic | Margaret Engebretson | 112,895 | 38.5 | |
| Independent | Ken Driessen | 3,661 | 1.4 | |
| Total votes | 322,784 | 100.0 | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromWisconsin's 7th congressional district 2011–2019 | Succeeded by |
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| Preceded by | United States Secretary of Transportation 2025–present | Incumbent |
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| Preceded by Janet Petro Acting | Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Acting 2025–present | Incumbent |
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| Preceded byas Secretary of Housing and Urban Development | Order of precedence of the United States as Secretary of Transportation | Succeeded byas Secretary of Energy |
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| Preceded byas Secretary of Housing and Urban Development | 14th in line as Secretary of Transportation | Succeeded byas Secretary of Energy |
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