Wife of the Vice President of the United States
| Second Lady of the United States of America |
|
|---|---|
| Style | Mrs. Pence (informal) Madam Second Lady (informal) |
| Abbreviation | SLOTUS |
| Residence | Number One Observatory Circle |
| Inaugural holder | Abigail Adams |
| Formation | April 21, 1789 |
| Website | WhiteHouse.gov |
The Second Lady of the United States (SLOTUS) is the informal title held by the wife of the Vice President of the United States, concurrent with the vice president's term of office. This title is less commonly used when compared to the title of First Lady of the United States. Karen Pence is the current Second Lady.
The term "Second Lady", coined in contrast to the First Lady (who is almost always the wife of the President), may have been first used by Jennie Tuttle Hobart (whose husband was Vice President from 1897 to 1899) to refer to herself.
The title later fell out of favor, but was revived in the 1980s. During the 1990s the title was again abandoned, in favor of "wife of the Vice President", but was later resurrected during the administration of Barack Obama. Its use was continued by the administration of Donald Trump,, although Donald Trump himself said, during his presidency, that he had never heard the term.
There are five living former second ladies: Barbara Bush, wife of George H. W. Bush; Marilyn Quayle, wife of Dan Quayle; Tipper Gore, wife of Al Gore; Lynne Cheney, wife of Dick Cheney; and Jill Biden, wife of Joe Biden.
The second lady's visibility in the public sphere has been a somewhat recent development. Although the role of the First Lady as White House hostess dates from the beginning of the republic (and was typically filled by another member of the president's family if the president was unmarried or a widower), with a few exceptions, it was generally not until the late 20th century and early 21st century that vice-presidential wives took on public roles that attracted significant media attention.
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