United States Under Secretary of the Army

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United States Under Secretary of the Army
Seal of the US Department of the Army.svg
Flag of Assistant Secretary of War.svg
Flag of the under secretary
Michael Obadal.jpg
Incumbent
Michael Obadal [1]
since September 22, 2025
United States Department of the Army
Style Mr. Under Secretary
Reports to Secretary of the Army
AppointerThe president
with Senate advice and consent
Term length No fixed term
FormationSeptember 18, 1947
First holder William Henry Draper Jr.
Succession 18th in SecDef succession
Salary Executive Schedule, level III
Website www.army.mil

The United States under secretary of the Army is the second-highest-ranking civilian official of the United States Department of the Army, serving directly under the secretary of the Army. The secretary and under secretary, together with two military officers, the chief of staff and the vice chief of staff of the Army, constitute the senior leaders of the United States Army.

Contents

The following officials report to the under secretary of the Army:

There is also a deputy under secretary of the Army who assists the under secretary in his tasks, including direction of the Army Science Board and the Army Analytics Group, and oversight of the Army's test and evaluation efforts. [2]

History

The office was created in 1947 as part of the general reorganization of the United States Armed Forces occasioned by the National Security Act of 1947. The office was initially styled "Under Secretary of War" and was created by Department of War General Order 67, dated July 25, 1947. [3] Three weeks later, on August 16, 1947, Department of War Circular 225 redesignated the position as "Under Secretary of the Army". [3]

List of under secretaries of the Army

The following men have held the post: [4]

No.PortraitNameTerm startTerm endPresident(s) served under
1 William Henry Draper Jr.jpg William Henry Draper Jr. September 18, 1947February 28, 1949 Harry S. Truman
2 Gordon Gray - Project Gutenberg etext 20587.jpg Gordon Gray May 1949June 1949
3 VoorheesTracy cropped.jpg Tracy Voorhees August 1949April 1950
4 No image available.svg Archibald S. Alexander May 1950April 1952
5 Karl R. Bendetsen.jpg Karl R. Bendesten May 1952October 1952
6 Earl D. Johnson.jpg Earl D. Johnson October 1952January 1954
7 John Slezak (Undersecretary of the US Army).jpg John Slezak February 1954January 1955Dwight D. Eisenhower
8 Charles C. Finucane.jpg Charles C. Finucane February 1955April 1958
9 Hugh Milton II.jpg Hugh M. Milton II August 1958January 1961
10 Stephen Ailes, official photo.jpg Stephen Ailes February 1961January 1964
11 Paul R Ignatius.jpg Paul Robert Ignatius February 1964December 1964Lyndon B. Johnson
12 Stanley Rogers Resor, official photo.jpg Stanley Rogers Resor April 1965July 1965
13 David E. McGiffert.jpg David E. McGiffert November 1965February 1969
14 Thaddeus Beal.jpg Thaddeus Beal March 1969September 1971Richard Nixon
15 Kenneth E. BeLieu.jpg Kenneth E. BeLieu September 1971June 1973
16 Herman R. Staudt.jpg Herman R. Staudt October 1973May 1975 Gerald Ford
17 Norman Ralph Augustine.jpg Norman Ralph Augustine May 1975July 1977
18 Walter B. LaBerge.jpg Walter B. LaBerge July 1977February 27, 1980Jimmy Carter
19 Robert H. Spiro (US Undersecretary of the Army) 2.jpg Robert Harry Spiro Jr. [5] February 28, 1980October 6, 1981
20 James R. Ambrose.jpg James R. Ambrose October 7, 1981February 1988Ronald Reagan
21 Michael P.W. Stone, Under Secretary of the Army (cropped 3).jpg Michael P. W. Stone May 1988August 14, 1989 George H.W. Bush
22 John W. Shannon (cropped).JPEG John W. Shannon August 14, 1989November 23, 1993
23 Joe R. Reeder (cropped).JPEG Joe R. Reeder November 24, 1993November 12, 1997Bill Clinton
24 Robert M. Walker (cropped).JPEG Robert M. Walker November 13, 1997October 15, 1998
25 Dr. Bernard D. Rostker, Under Secretary of the Army (cropped).jpg Bernard D. Rostker November 1998May 23, 2000
26 Gregory R Dahlberg (cropped).jpg Gregory R. Dahlberg May 23, 2000March 4, 2001
27 Les Brownlee, official DoD photo (cropped).jpg Les Brownlee November 10, 2001December 16, 2004George W. Bush
28 Defense.gov News Photo 010608-A-3569D-001 (cropped).jpg Raymond F. DuBois February 18, 2005February 20, 2006
28 Peter Geren, Under Secretary of the U.S. Army, official photo (cropped).jpg Pete Geren February 21, 2006July 23, 2007
29 Nelson M Ford (cropped).jpg Nelson M. Ford [6] July 24, 2007January 20, 2009
30 Official Photo of Under Secretary of the Army Joseph W. Westphal (cropped).jpg Joseph W. Westphal [7] September 21, 2009March 28, 2014 Barack Obama
31 Brad carson23 (cropped).jpg Brad Carson March 28, 2014June 30, 2015
Eric K Fanning (cropped).jpg Eric Fanning (acting)June 30, 2015November 3, 2015
Acting Under Secretary of the US Army Thomas E. Hawley, November 2015 (cropped).jpg Thomas E. Hawley (acting) [8] November 3, 2015January 4, 2016
32 Patrick J. Murphy official portrait (cropped).jpg Patrick Murphy [9] January 4, 2016January 20, 2017
Karl F. Schneider official photo (cropped).jpg Karl F. Schneider (acting)January 20, 2017July 31, 2017 Donald Trump
33 Ryan McCarthy-Under Secretary of the Army (cropped).jpg Ryan McCarthy [10] August 1, 2017September 30, 2019
Serving as Acting Secretary of the Army: July 23, 2019 – September 30, 2019
34 James E. McPherson official photo (cropped).jpg James E. McPherson July 23, 2019(acting)March 25, 2020(acting)
March 25, 2020January 20, 2021
Christopher Lowman (cropped 2).jpg Christopher Lowman (acting)January 20, 2021February 7, 2022 Joe Biden
35 Gabe Camarillo, Army Under Secretary (cropped).jpg Gabriel Camarillo February 8, 2022January 20, 2025
David R. Fitzgerald.jpg David R. Fitzgerald (acting)January 20, 2025September 22, 2025 Donald Trump
36 Michael Obadal.jpg Michael Obadal September 22, 2025Incumbent Donald Trump

References

  1. https://www.army.mil/leaders/usa/#org-bio
  2. "Assignment of Functions and Responsibilities within Headquarters, Department of the Army" (PDF). Army Publishing Directorate. March 6, 2020. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 30, 2021. Retrieved October 19, 2022.
  3. 1 2 "Records of the office of the Secretary of the Army". archives.gov. August 15, 2016. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  4. "Former Under Secretaries". United States Army. Archived from the original on January 9, 2008. Retrieved February 28, 2010.
  5. "Jimmy Carter: NOMINATIONS SUBMITTED TO THE SENATE Week Ending". www.presidency.ucsb.edu. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  6. "Nelson Ford becomes 29th Under Secretary of the Army". army.mil. Archived from the original on September 19, 2015. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
  7. "Honorable Dr. Joseph W. Westphal, Under Secretary of the Army" (PDF). army.mil. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
  8. "Thomas E. Hawley, a Senior Official, is performing the duties of the Under Secretary of the Army" (PDF). army.mil. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 11, 2015. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  9. "Patrick J. Murphy, Former Under Secretary of the Army". defense.gov. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
  10. "Ryan D. McCarthy, Former Secretary of the Army". defense.gov. Retrieved July 26, 2021.