Data from the Center for Presidential Transition compares nominations and Senate confirmations from the most recent four presidents during their first three years in office.
The Center for Presidential Transition’s comprehensive guide on the activities required during the transition. This guide for the 2024 presidential election cycle was produced in collaboration with the Boston Consulting Group. It features detailed outlines of transition best practices, historical materials from past transitions, and recommendations for a successful presidential transition to a new or second-term administration.
Federal agencies face a cascading series of challenges before and after a presidential election and into the early months of a new or second-term administration. Since 2008, the Partnership for Public Service has provided resources to federal agencies, while promoting knowledge-sharing and collaboration, to strengthen presidential transitions.
The Agency Transition Guide has been developed by the Partnership’s Center for Presidential Transition® and Boston Consulting Group, informed by conversations with federal leaders and other presidential transition experts. It provides lessons learned from past transitions at federal agencies and includes best practices and key decision points to help senior career executives lead successful transition planning efforts.
While this guide focuses on presidential transitions, most federal agencies will also experience a change in political leadership at least once during an administration. The practices outlined in this guide apply to principal leadership transitions independent of the election cycle.
Presidents are responsible for about 4,000 political appointments, about 1,200 of which require Senate confirmation. This paper includes a comparison of how President Joe Biden’s pace of appointments and confirmations compares with the previous three presidents at the August recess.
For a detailed list of many key nominees and their statuses, see the Biden Political Appointee Tracker which is updated daily by the Partnership for Public Service and The Washington Post.