What is the designated survivor?

Every member of President Trump's Cabinet was invited to attend his first State of the Union address on Tuesday night – except one, the “designated survivor. read more

In the United States, a designated survivor (or designated successor) is an individual in the presidential line of succession, usually a member of the United States Cabinet, who is arranged to be at a physically distant, secure, and undisclosed location when the President, the Vice President, and the other officials in the line of succession are gathered at a single location, such as during State of the Union addresses and presidential inaugurations. read more

about Designated Survivor Kiefer Sutherland stars as Tom Kirkman, a lower-level cabinet member who is suddenly appointed President of the United States after a catastrophic attack on the US Capitol during the State of the Union. read more

A designated survivor is a cabinet-level official appointed during the State of the Union every year in order to maintain the continuity of government should a “calamity” happen while all other members of the federal government are in a single location. read more