Dem
47
GOP
53
Donald Trump often brags about how he loves winners and hates losers. But actions speak louder than words and he has populated the top ranks of his administration with many losers—that is, people who have lost elections in the past. Here is a partial list:
| Candidate | New Job | Races(s) Lost |
| Doug Burgum | Secretary of the Interior | Lost 2024 Republican presidential nomination |
| Lori Chavez-DeRemer | Secretary of Labor | Lost 2024 general election in House district OR-05 |
| Doug Collins | Secretary of Veterans Affairs | Lost 2020 special election for the Senate in Georgia |
| Tulsi Gabbard | Director of National Intelligence | Lost 2020 Democratic presidential primary |
| Pete Hegseth | Secretary of Defense | Dropped out of 2012 Minnesota Republican Senate primary before the vote |
| Pete Hoekstra | Ambassador to Canada | Lost 2010 gubernatorial race and 2012 Senate race, both in Michigan |
| Mike Huckabee | Ambassador to Israel | Lost 2008 and 2016 Republican presidential nominations |
| Robert Kennedy | Secretary of HHS | Dropped out of the 2024 Democratic presidential primary, general election |
| Karoline Leavitt | WH Press Secretary | Lost 2022 general election in House district NH-01 |
| Linda McMahon | Secretary of Education | Lost 2010 and 2012 U.S. Senate general elections in Connecticut |
| Mehmet Oz | Medicare Administrator | Lost 2022 U.S. Senate general election in Pennsylvania |
| Vivek Ramaswamy | DOGEy | Lost 2024 Republican presidential nomination |
| Marco Rubio | Secretary of State | Lost 2016 Republican presidential primary |
| Scott Turner | Secretary of HUD | Lost 2006 House special election in California (came in 8th of 15) |
| Dave Weldon | CDC director | Lost 2012 Republican Senate primary and 2024 Republican House primary |
| Matthew Whittaker | Ambassador to NATO | Lost 2014 Republican Senate primary in Iowa |
| Lee Zeldin | EPA administrator | Lost 2022 New York gubernatorial election |
When compared to previous administrations, this is a huge number of losers. For example, in the Biden administration, Sec. of Agriculture Tom Vilsack ran unsuccessfully for president in 2008 and Sec. of Transportation Pete Buttigieg ran for president in 2020, but Biden came nowhere near Trump's 17 losers (so far). (V)