Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

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Template:Short description Template:Infobox official post

The vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (VJCS)<ref>Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman - DSD/VJCS NEWS CONFERENCE</ref><ref>Department of Defense - DSD/VJCS NEWS CONFERENCE</ref> is, by U.S. law, the second highest-ranking military officer in the United States Armed Forces,<ref name="VJCS">Template:USC - Vice Chairman</ref> ranking just below the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The vice chairman outranks all respective heads of each service branch, with the exception of the chairman, but does not have operational command authority over their service branches.<ref name="VJCS" /> The vice chairman assists the chairman in exercising their duties. In the absence of the chairman, the vice chairman presides over the meetings of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and performs all other duties prescribed under Template:USC and may also perform other duties that the president, the chairman, or the secretary of defense prescribes.<ref name="VJCS" />

The 13th and current vice chairman is General Christopher J. Mahoney, who assumed office on 1 October 2025.

Responsibilities

Although the office of Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is considered to be very important and highly prestigious, neither the vice chairman nor the Joint Chiefs of Staff as a body have any command authority over combatant forces. The operational chain of command runs from the president to the secretary of defense directly to the commanders of the unified combatant commands.<ref>Template:USC - Combatant commands: assigned forces; chain of command</ref> The vice chairman's primary duties include: "overseeing joint military requirements, representing the military in National Security Council deputies meetings, and performing other duties as directed by the chairman."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Appointment and term limitations

The vice chairman is nominated by the president for appointment from any of the regular components of the armed forces, and must be confirmed via majority vote by the Senate.<ref name="VJCS" /> The chairman and vice chairman may not be members of the same armed force service branch.<ref name="VJCS" /> However, the president may waive that restriction for a limited period of time in order to provide for the orderly transition of officers appointed to serve in those positions.<ref name="VJCS" /> The vice chairman serves a single four-year term of office at the pleasure of the president,<ref name="VJCS" /><ref name="NDAA2017" /> and cannot be reappointed to serve additional terms unless in times of war or national emergency,<ref name="VJCS" /><ref name="NDAA2017" /> in which case there is no limit to how many times an officer can be reappointed.<ref name="VJCS" />

The vice chairman is also not eligible to be appointed for promotion to chairman, or any other four-star position in the armed forces, unless the president determines that it is necessary in the interest of the nation.<ref name="VJCS" /><ref name="NDAA2017" /> The vice chairman assumes office on October 1 of every odd-number year, except the assumption of that term may not begin in the same year as the term of the chairman.<ref name="NDAA2017">Public Law 114–328 - The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 increased the term length Chairman and the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from two years to four years and the Vice Chairman is no longer eligible to become Chairman.</ref> By statute, the vice chairman is appointed as a four-star general or admiral.<ref name="VJCS" />

History

The position of vice chairman was created by the Goldwater–Nichols Act of 1986 in order to centralize the military advisory chain of command to the president, the secretary of defense, and to the National Security Council. Originally the vice chairman was not included as a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, until the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1992 made him a full voting member.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Historically, the vice chairman has served two, two-year terms before the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 amended the vice chairman's term length, beginning on January 1, 2021.<ref name="NDAA2017" /> The same act also set a statutory beginning term date.<ref name="NDAA2017" /> Prior to that, the position was filled whenever the previous holder left office.

List of vice chairman

General Richard B. Myers and General Peter Pace were later appointed to serve as chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff from 2001 to 2005 and from 2005 to 2007, respectively. Template:Officeholder table start Template:Officeholder table Template:Officeholder table Template:Officeholder table Template:Officeholder table Template:Officeholder table Template:Officeholder table Template:Officeholder table Template:Officeholder table Template:Officeholder table Template:Officeholder table Template:Officeholder table Template:Officeholder table Template:Officeholder table Template:Officeholder table end

Timeline

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 bar:owens   from:1994  till:1996  color:vjcs  text:"Owens"
 bar:ralston  from:1996  till:2000  color:vjcs  text:"Ralston"
 bar:myers   from:2000  till:2001  color:vjcs  text:"Myers"
 bar:pace    from:2001  till:2005  color:vjcs  text:"Pace"
 bar:giambastiani  from:2005  till:2007  color:vjcs  text:"Giambastiani"
 bar:cartwright  from:2007  till:2011  color:vjcs  text:"Cartwright"
 bar:winnefeld  from:2011  till:2015  color:vjcs  text:"Winnefeld"
 bar:selva   from:2015  till:2019  color:vjcs  text:"Selva"
 bar:hyten   from:2019  till:2021  color:vjcs  text:"Hyten"
 bar:grady   from:2021  till:$now  color:vjcs  text:"Grady"

</timeline>

Vice chairmen by branch of service within the Department of Defense

  • Army: 0
  • Marine Corps: 3
  • Navy: 5
  • Air Force: 5
  • Space Force: 0

Positional color

VJCS flag with yellow fringe.

The positional color (flag) of the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is white with a diagonal medium blue strip from upper hoist to lower fly. Centered on the flag is an American bald eagle with wings spread horizontally, in proper colors. The talons grasp three crossed arrows. A shield with blue chief and thirteen red and white stripes is on the eagle's breast. Diagonally, from upper fly to lower hoist are four five-pointed stars, medium blue on the white, two above the eagle, and two below. The fringe is yellow; the cord and tassels are medium blue and white. The design was approved by Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger on 20 January 1987.<ref>Army Regulation 840-10, paragraph 3-14 (2 Apr. 1992).</ref>

See also

Notes

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References

Template:Reflist

Template:VCJCS Template:Current US Department of Defense Secretaries Template:Current JCS members

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