Elaine Duke

Early life and education The daughter of Francesco (Frank) Costanzo and Concetta Scherma, Her maternal grandparents emigrated from Aidone, Sicily and her paternal family roots can be traced to Coreno Ausonio in the Lazio region of Italy. She graduated with a B.S. in business management from New Hampshire College (now Southern New Hampshire University) and an M.B.A. from Chaminade University of Honolulu.

Career Duke held a consulting practice at Elaine Duke & Associates, LLC in Woodbridge, Virginia.

Duke served as Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Management at the department under both presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama from July 2008 to April 2010. She has more than 28 years of experience with the federal government. In 2018, Duke was elected as a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration.

Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security On January 30, 2017, President Donald Trump announced that he would nominate Duke as United States Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security. On March 15, 2017, her nomination was reported to the United States Senate. On April 4, 2017, she was confirmed by a vote of 85–14.

On February 23, 2018, she announced plans to retire from her position as Deputy Secretary in April of the same year, after serving in the federal government of the U.S. for over thirty years.

Acting Secretary of Homeland Security After John F. Kelly was named White House Chief of Staff on July 28, 2017, Duke was named Acting Secretary of Homeland Security.

In September 2017, in the wake of Hurricane Maria, Duke made the decision to waive the Jones Act for ten days, which requires goods shipped between points in the U.S. to be carried by vessels built, owned, and operated by Americans. The waiving of the act allows foreign nations to bring aid to Puerto Rico.

During a White House news conference regarding Hurricane Maria, Duke said the government response to Hurricane Maria was "a good news story." San Juan, Puerto Rico Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz responded, "This is not a good news story. This is a 'people are dying' story." Duke then traveled to Puerto Rico, met with officials at the San Juan International Airport (sic, Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport) and clarified her earlier remark by stating, "there's much more work to do, and we will never be satisfied." In 2020, Duke told in interviews that Trump briefly considered divesting from or selling Puerto Rico as the disaster hit the island.

In a July 2020 interview with The New York Times, after her tenure had ended, Duke criticized Trump's and his administration's approach and rhetoric on immigration-related issues. Duke identifies as a Republican.