Who Is Lloyd Austin's Wife, Charlene?

It's typical for couples to share certain passions, and this is especially true for someone like Charlene Austin, who is the wife of United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin (not to be confused with Trump's controversial Secretary of Defense nominee, Pete Hegseth).  Both Charlene and Lloyd share a passion for public service that has defined their lives. An accomplished and educated woman, the Washington, D.C., native has both a Bachelor of Science degree and a Master of Science degree, according to her Department of Defense profile.

Charlene has had a decades-long career advocating for families with loved ones in the military. She's on the advisory boards for the Purdue Military Family Research Institute and the Military Child Education Coalition, and is the CAPSTONE Senior Spouse Facilitator at the National Defense University. While her husband served in the army for over 40 years, Charlene wore many hats for the military community, and was recognized for her hard work by receiving Defense service awards (via Military Family Advisory Network).

Lloyd Austin has said some of the sweetest things about his significant other, including the time he presented the undergraduate commencement at Fayetteville State University in May 2023. Both Lloyd and Charlene Austin attended FSU, which is where they first encountered each other. Lloyd shared a clip of his speech to X, formerly known as Twitter, calling Charlene Austin his "favorite Bronco." One person commented on Lloyd's tweet, sharing how they met Charlene and said, "She is a lovely, lovely lady."

Fayetteville is a pretty special place for me.

For more than 40 years, I've been happily married to a woman whom I met right here in Fayetteville: my favorite Bronco, Charlene Austin, Class of 1982. pic.twitter.com/uBn9J0P5k5

— Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III (@SecDef) May 13, 2023

The Secretary of Defense also credited his wife for turning him into a better person during his opening statement at his Senate Armed Services Committee confirmation hearing. He also thanked Charlene for never leaving his side throughout their relationship. Unlike other political figures, Lloyd hasn't had a scandalous affair that haunts him. The biggest misconduct he's had so far is him not telling the White House about his complications from prostate cancer surgery (via Newsweek). Meanwhile, Charlene, like her husband, remains unproblematic, continuing to provide services for others.