U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Chavez-DeRemer Resigns Amid Investigation

By Nigel Jaquiss
April 21, 2026

U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer resigned her position April 20, amid an investigation into various allegations of professional misconduct.

Chavez-DeRemer, a Republican who got her start in politics on the Happy Valley City Council, represented Oregon’s 5th Congressional District from 2023 to 2025. With strong support from the Teamsters union, Chavez-DeRemer won Senate confirmation in March 2025, becoming the first Cabinet secretary from Oregon since the late Neil Goldschmidt, a Portland Democrat who served as President Jimmy Carter’s secretary of transportation from 1979 to 1981.

Chavez-DeRemer becomes the third member of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet—all of them women—to depart this year. She follows former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and former Attorney General Pam Bondi out the door.

The New York Post first broke news of an internal investigation into Chavez-DeRemer’s workplace behavior in January. As other media outlets joined the story, allegations of workplace drinking, an affair with a security staffer, and using public resources for personal travel swirled around the secretary. Chavez-DeRemer has denied any wrongdoing.

White House spokesman Steven Cheung announced Chavez-DeRemer’s departure in a statement on Monday.

“Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer will be leaving the administration to take a position in the private sector,” Cheung said. “She has done a phenomenal job.”

Of continuing interest to many in Oregon politics is the fate of former Senate Minority Leader Daniel Bonham (R-The Dalles), who resigned his position and moved to Washington, D.C., last fall to become an assistant secretary of labor. Bonham’s appointment awaits Senate confirmation. In a text message after Chavez-DeRemer’s resignation, Bonham said he is “just trying to get through the process and hoping to serve.”