Lonnie Bunch is leaving. The fight over the Smithsonian isn't
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Secretary Lonnie Bunch leaves behind an 180-year-old institution — and many questions over its future. Photo: Al Drago for The Washington Post via Getty Images
Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch's retirement is leaving Washington with a big question: Who will lead one of the city's most cherished — and politically embattled — institutions next?
Why it matters: Bunch's departure comes at a pivotal moment for the Smithsonian, as the Trump administration pushes to reshape the world's largest museum complex — particularly how it tells American history.
- It also puts new focus on the Smithsonian's little-known but powerful Board of Regents, which will choose Bunch's successor.
State of play: Bunch, 73, announced Tuesday that he'll retire by year's end after nearly 38 years at the Smithsonian, including seven as secretary.
- The historian became the Smithsonian's first Black secretary in 2019 after founding and leading the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
- His tenure saw the addition of the American Women's History Museum and Latino Museum, whose permanent home on the National Mall was just announced.
- The Board of Regents says it'll name an acting secretary and launch a national search for a permanent successor.
What he's saying: Bunch told the New York Times that Trump administration pressure wasn't behind his decision: "It was really just saying, now's the time."
- But he acknowledged the past year "has been stressful."
- His strategy for navigating the White House, he said, has been picking his battles: "There were times I would fight, make clear what the red lines were. And there were other times I let things go."
The big picture: The Smithsonian has become a major front in Trump's efforts to remake Washington's cultural landscape.
- Trump overhauled the Kennedy Center's leadership and became its chair. The performing arts center now faces a possible two-year closure for renovations.
- But the Smithsonian is different: Trump can't simply appoint Bunch's replacement.
How it works: The Smithsonian isn't an executive-branch agency. Its 17-member Board of Regents governs the institution — and the board, not the president, hires the secretary.
Zoom in: The board is an unusual mix of Washington power players:
- Chief Justice John Roberts serves as chancellor, alongside Vice President JD Vance.
- Six members of Congress serve as Regents, three from each party.
- Nine seats are reserved for private citizens, two of whom must live in D.C.
Still, the administration has steadily ramped up pressure on the Smithsonian.
- Trump signed an executive order last year targeting what he called "improper ideology" at the institution and singling out the African American Museum for promoting "divisive, race-centered ideology."
- American History temporarily removed references to Trump's two impeachments from a presidential exhibit before restoring them after public scrutiny, while artist Amy Sherald canceled a planned Portrait Gallery show, citing concerns over censorship.
Flash forward: This summer, the White House accused the National Museum of American History of ideological bias and placed signs outside warning visitors of "inaccurate information."
- Last week, the administration threatened to withhold Smithsonian support and funding, accusing its leadership of promoting a "radical ideology" that weakens "shared American identity."
That threat has teeth: About 62% of the Smithsonian's $1.75 billion annual budget comes from federal funds, which support everything from staff and security to collections care and building maintenance.
Behind the scenes: Bunch pushed back.
- In an internal July email to Smithsonian staff obtained by Axios, he wrote that the White House report "is not a fair characterization of the work and totality" of American History.
- Bunch pledged a continued commitment to "scholarship, nonpartisanship, independence, accuracy, and integrity."
- "As I have often stated, the Smithsonian is the glue that holds the nation together," he wrote.
The intrigue: The Board of Regents is undergoing its own transition.
- Three of its nine citizen seats are currently vacant, the New York Times reports.
- Citizen Regents are nominated by the board, approved by a joint resolution of Congress and then signed into law by the president.
- The Smithsonian has been searching for successors for four citizen Regents whose terms expire this year.
What we don't know: Whether those seats will be filled before Bunch's successor is chosen.
- The Smithsonian also hasn't said who will serve as acting secretary or offered a timeline for the national search.
- A spokesperson declined to provide Axios with additional details Tuesday.
Worth noting: Last time, the Regents moved quickly.
- When secretary David Skorton announced his departure in December 2018, the board formed a search committee just over a week later.
- With help from an executive search firm, the committee gathered input, interviewed candidates and selected Bunch in May 2019 — about five months after the search began.
Bunch suggested his defense of the Smithsonian won't end with his tenure.
- His "next chapter," he wrote to colleagues Tuesday in a letter obtained by Axios, will allow him to "continue to protect the integrity of the Smithsonian" and champion history that reflects "the complex story of our nation."
The bottom line: Bunch is leaving. The institution he calls a 180-year-old "reservoir of science, history, art and culture" is entering its next test.