The White House Tansition Map

[Dr. A ♥ O 203]

White House Transition Visual

See the top positions in Obama's cabinet that are still open and follow the ones that are already filled by the President Elect and the ones to be filled soon!

Since 1952, at the urging of President Truman, presidential transition processes have been in place to help facilitate the change from one administration to the next. The Presidential Transition Act of 1963 formalized the process, providing federal funds and logisitical support. The act was updated in 2000 by President Clinton to accomodate an increasingly complex transition process.

Presidential transitions today involve the turnover of over 4,000 political appointments, all of whom must be identified, vetted, and confirmed. Over 1,000 of those positions require Senate confirmation. By some estimates, recent transitions have taken an average of one year to be seen through to completion. The last time a transition occurred across political party lines was in 2000, between President Clinton and President Bush.

This year, just 77 days separate election day from inauguration day, but the transition process began long before any ballots are cast, and will continue long after the next President is sworn in. Both Senators McCain and Obama had already begun taking transition steps by the summer of 2008, identifying heads of transition teams and establishing communication with the White House.