Washington (CNN) - Transportation Secretary Ray
LaHood, the lone Republican in President Barack Obama's Cabinet,
announced Tuesday that he's leaving the administration for the
president's second term.
The departure of LaHood is the latest of several changes in Obama's
administration since the president won re-election in November. He's at
least the sixth Cabinet official to say he is leaving as Obama begins
his next four years in office.
LaHood, 67, was named transportation secretary in January 2009.
Before that, he served seven terms in the U.S. House as a representative
from Illinois. He said in a statement Tuesday he would remain in his
role until a successor is confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
"I've told President Obama, and I've told many of you, that this is
the best job I've ever had. I'm grateful to have the opportunity to work
with all of you and I'm confident that DOT will continue to achieve
great things in the future," LaHood wrote.
When he first took the Transportation post in 2009, LaHood was one of
two Republicans in Obama's Cabinet, along with Defense Secretary Robert
Gates, who served under George W. Bush and remained in his role when
Obama took office. He left the administration in 2011.
Chuck Hagel, a former senator from Nebraska, would become the only
Republican member of Obama's Cabinet if he's confirmed by the Senate.
Other roles – including the secretaries of labor, interior, and commerce – also need to be filled for Obama's second term.
Sources familiar with the process have previously told CNN that
former Washington state Gov. Christine Gregoire and Ohio Gov. Ted
Strickland were being considered for the open jobs.
Obama said Tuesday that LaHood and he were "drawn together by a
shared belief that those of us in public service owe an allegiance not
to party or faction, but to the people we were elected to represent."
"Ray has never wavered in that belief," the president said.
In his statement Tuesday, LaHood touted his achievements on
transportation safety, pointing to his Distracted Driver Initiative and
new regulations combating airplane pilot fatigue. LaHood's
transportation department also pushed through new fines on airlines that
left passengers stuck in planes parked on tarmacs, which resulted in
those types of delays diminishing.
CNN's Kevin Liptak contributed to this report.
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood
