On Monday, March 3, 2025, Linda McMahon was confirmed by the Senate to be the next Secretary of Education, making her the last in President Trump’s cabinet to be confirmed.
McMahon’s confirmation was one of this cycle’s more contested, coming down to a 51-45 vote split along party lines. That ties her with Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick as the third slimmest confirmation for Trump’s cabinet, behind Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Secretary of defense Pete Hegseth. Controversy around McMahon’s appointment has arisen mainly due to her history in World Wrestling Entertainment, or, WWE. This history does however nod to her skills and what she will bring to her new role in government and education.
McMahon was born on October 4, 1948, in New Bern, North Carolina. After high school, she earned a Bachelor’s Degree in French at East Carolina University and married her better-known husband, Vince McMahon, with whom she would rise to prominence. Together they embarked on multiple businesses and jobs throughout the 1970s with little success. It wasn’t until in 1980, their newest venture, the wrestling promotion Titan Sports Inc., began to see exponential growth.
While her husband Vince oversaw the theatrical and entertainment side of the business, McMahon often worked behind the glamor and headed the company’s business side, helping expand its scope from just wrestling to a brand with merchandise and a presence outside of its sports events. In 1997, she fully came into this role and became the CEO. Under her leadership, the company changed from Titan Sports Inc. into the WWE of today.
McMahon’s time at WWE saw it grow into a conglomerate of live events, television, movies, video games and merchandise. In 2009, however, she stepped down from her post to pursue a career in public office. First, in January 2009, she was appointed to the Connecticut State Board of Education in a process surrounded by controversy much like that of her recent appointment to the Cabinet. Serving on the board for a little over a year, McMahon stepped down in 2010 to run for the Senate. While winning the Republican nomination, she lost in the election to current Democrat Senator Richard Blumenthal. McMahon would run again in 2012 for Connecticut’s other seat in the senate but lost again to current Democrat Senator Chris Murphy.
McMahon’s career in politics continued as a significant campaign donor for Donald Trump in the 2016 Presidential election, with whom she had been acquainted since he appeared on WWE in 2007. Once elected, Trump nominated McMahon to be the next administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA), a cabinet level position that would see her working closely with the President. McMahon’s tenure saw steady growth of the SBA, but she eventually cut her time in the cabinet short in 2019, opting to resign and take over America First Action, a Super Political Action Committee dedicated to supporting Trump’s 2020 reelection campaign as well as the campaign’s of Trump policy backers.
These positions under President Trump helped her become the confirmed Secretary of Education for the current administration. While she has proven herself to be a shrewd entrepreneur with her pivotal role in the development of the WWE franchise and an efficient politician in her limited experience, McMahon remains a controversial secretary due to her lack of history with education and connection to WWE, a business surrounded by lawsuits and content considered by many Americans to be inappropriate for children.
