Deb Haaland

Debra Anne Haaland (; born December 2, 1960) is an American politician who served as the 54th United States secretary of the interior from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party, she served as the U.S. representative for New Mexico's 1st congressional district from 2019 to 2021 and was chair of the New Mexico Democratic Party from 2015 to 2017. Haaland, a Native American, is an enrolled member of the Laguna Pueblo tribe.

Haaland's congressional district included most of Albuquerque and most of its suburbs. Along with Sharice Davids, she is one of the first two Native American women elected to the U.S. Congress. She is a political progressive who supports the Green New Deal and Medicare for All.

On December 17, 2020, then-president-elect Joe Biden announced that he would nominate Haaland to serve as Secretary of the Interior. She was confirmed by the US Senate on March 15, 2021, by a vote of 51–40.

Early life and education

Haaland was born in Winslow, Arizona. She is an enrolled member of the Laguna Pueblo. The Pueblo people have lived on the land that is now the state of New Mexico since the 1200s and Haaland identifies herself as a 35th-generation New Mexican. Her mother, Mary Toya, Her father, Major John David "Dutch" Haaland, a Norwegian Minnesotan, was an officer in the United States Marine Corps and recipient of the Silver Star for his actions in Vietnam; he was buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery in 2005.

As a child in a military family, Haaland moved frequently. She attended 13 public schools across the United States before the family settled in Albuquerque, New Mexico, to be close to family who also belong to the Laguna Pueblo. Haaland graduated from Highland High School in Albuquerque in 1978. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of New Mexico in 1994. Her professors included future United States poet laureate Joy Harjo, who published Haaland's poetry in a 1997 anthology.

Four days after graduation, Haaland gave birth to her child, Somáh. At times during this period, she has said, she did not earn enough money to afford housing and had to rely on friends for shelter. While serving as Interior Secretary, Haaland was working on completing a master's degree in American Indian studies at the University of California, Los Angeles. and successfully advocated for the corporation to create policies and commitments to earth-friendly business practices. She ran for Lieutenant Governor of New Mexico in 2014. Her ticket, headed by then-Attorney General of New Mexico Gary King, the Democratic nominee for Governor of New Mexico, lost to the Republican ticket of Governor Susana Martinez and Lieutenant Governor John Sanchez.

Haaland was elected to a two-year term as the chair of the Democratic Party of New Mexico in April 2015. During her tenure, New Mexico Democrats regained control of the New Mexico House of Representatives and the office of the New Mexico secretary of state. Haaland has been credited with rebuilding the state party after large defeats for Democrats in New Mexico in 2014. She raised enough money during her two-year term as chair to pay off seven years' worth of debt incurred under previous chairs. Haaland defeated Damon Martinez and Antoinette Sedillo Lopez to win the Democratic Party nomination in June 2018, receiving 40.5% of the vote and winning every county in the district.

Haaland campaigned as a progressive who supports the Green New Deal and Medicare for All. Her campaign was endorsed by the climate action group Sunrise Movement.

In the November 6 general election, Haaland defeated former New Mexico state representative Janice Arnold-Jones, receiving 59.1% of the vote and winning three of the district's five counties. Her victory was part of a sweep of New Mexico that saw Democrats win every statewide and federal office on the ballot that year, along with expanding their majority in the New Mexico House of Representatives.

2020

In the November 3 general election, Haaland received 58.2% of the vote defeating retired police detective Michelle Garcia Holmes, who ran for Lieutenant Governor of New Mexico in the 2018 gubernatorial election.

Tenure Congresswoman Deb Haaland (D-NM), is sworn in to the House of Representatives by Speaker Nancy Pelosi, accompanied by her mother Mary Toya and her child Somáh.

With Representative Sharice Davids of Kansas, a member of the Ho-Chunk Nation of Minnesota, elected simultaneously, Haaland was one of the first two Native American women to be seated in Congress. For her swearing-in ceremony in January 2019, Haaland chose to wear traditional Pueblo dress, a necklace, and moccasins..

Later that month, Haaland said that students from Covington Catholic High School had displayed "blatant hate, disrespect, and intolerance" during the 2019 Lincoln Memorial confrontation. A libel lawsuit brought by students of the school that called Haaland's words "false and defaming" was dismissed on the grounds that her statements were made in the scope of her employment as a legislator.

On March 7, 2019, during a debate on voting rights and campaign finance, Haaland became the first Native American woman to preside over the US House of Representatives.

During the 116th Congress, Haaland "co-sponsored more bills than any other freshman in Congress, and compiled one of the most liberal voting records", according to The New Yorker.

Committee assignments Committee on Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel Subcommittee on Readiness Committee on Natural Resources (Vice Chair) Subcommittee on Indigenous Peoples of the United States Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands (chair) Committee on Oversight and Reform Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties

Caucus memberships Congressional Native American Caucus (Co-chair) Congressional Progressive Caucus

U.S. Secretary of the Interior (2021–2025)

Nomination and confirmation On December 17, 2020, incoming President Joe Biden announced that he would nominate Haaland as Secretary of the Interior. Before Biden nominated Haaland, many senior Democrats had voiced their support for her as Secretary of the Interior, including House speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, and Senator Elizabeth Warren. Sunrise Movement, the climate-oriented political action group which supported her Congressional campaigns, continued their support by advocating for Haaland's nomination. Republican representatives Don Young and Tom Cole (a member of the Chickasaw Nation) also expressed their support for Haaland's nomination.

Haaland sworn in as Secretary of the Interior by Vice President Kamala Harris.

On March 15, 2021, Haaland was confirmed by the Senate by a 51–40 vote, with four Republicans (Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Dan Sullivan, Lindsey Graham) voting to confirm. She is the first Native American Cabinet secretary in US history.efn-num|Charles Curtis, who was a Kaw citizen and served as Vice President between 1929 and 1933, was the first ever Native American to serve in a United States Cabinet, but never served as a Cabinet secretary. Her departure from the House triggered a special election in 2021. Haaland was sworn in on March 18, 2021, wearing a combination of traditional Laguna Pueblo regalia and a colorful ribbon skirt, custom-made for her by Agnes Woodward. She has brought Indigenous traditions to the role, often wearing Native jewelry and decorating her office with Native art.

Tenure

On her first day as secretary, Haaland met with tribal media in a press conference organized by the department and the Native American Journalists Association, speaking about her intention to include the tribes as decisions that impact them are made. In April 2021, Haaland announced a new unit within Bureau of Indian Affairs that plans to tackle the decades-long crisis of missing and murdered Native Americans, saying, "We are fully committed to assisting Tribal communities with these investigations, and the MMU will leverage every resource available to be a force-multiplier in preventing these cases from becoming cold case investigations".

In May 2021, Haaland approved the new constitution of the Cherokee Nation with protections for Cherokee Freedmen. In June 2021, Haaland announced the creation of the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative. The initiative's goal is to investigate long-standing abuse in the now defunct residential boarding schools that housed Native American children under the 1819 Civilization Fund Act. Haaland attended a series of Road to Healing events to bring together survivors and their stories.

In March 2023, Haaland announced $25 million to be dedicated to bison conservation.

Haaland was involved in President Biden's designation of national monuments, including Avi Kwa Ame, Baaj Nwaavjo I'tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon, and Carlisle Federal Indian Boarding School National Monuments. These monuments will incorporate Native participation in land management, and Haaland has used her tenure to address historical wrongs by including tribes.

Haaland spoke at the 2024 Democratic National Convention on August 22, 2024.

2026 New Mexico gubernatorial campaign

On January 28, 2025, Haaland announced that she would run for governor of New Mexico in the 2026 election, seeking to succeed term-limited governor Michelle Lujan Grisham. She kicked off her campaign in Los Alamos to a large audience. On June 2, 2026, Haaland won the Democratic Primary for governor. If elected, Haaland would become the first Native American woman governor of a U.S. state in the history of the United States, and the fifth person to identify as Pueblo to govern what is now the State of New Mexico, after Po'pay, Luis Tupatu, José María González, and Pablo Montoya.

Electoral history

Awards and honors In 2025, Haaland was inducted into the Texas Trail of Fame.

Personal life Haaland has a child, Somáh, whom she raised as a single mother. On August 28, 2021, Haaland married her longtime partner, Skip Sayre, in Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico. She was previously married in her twenties.

Haaland is Catholic. Her hobbies include marathon running and gourmet cooking.