The second week of voting in the 2026 Wash100 Popular Vote contest saw dramatic increases in vote totals across the leaderboard, with public officials continuing to dominate the top tier while industry executives and new entrants reshaped the middle of the rankings. Compared to the previous week, overall engagement intensified significantly, pushing vote counts into the thousands and tightening competition across nearly every position.
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Who Led the Wash100 Popularity Vote in Week 2?
For the second consecutive week, Hung Cao of the U.S. Department of the Navy held the No. 1 ranking, expanding his total from 616 votes in Week 1 to 2,011 votes in Week 2. His commanding margin continued to set the pace for the field.
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard remained in second place, growing from 395 to 1,343 votes, maintaining a strong hold on the runner-up position.
Movement occurred within the top five as vote totals climbed sharply. Secretary of State Marco Rubio secured the No. 3 ranking with 1,337 votes, while Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem followed closely in fourth place with 1,309 votes. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth rounded out the top five in fifth place with 1,304 votes.
While the top five remained composed entirely of public officials, the margins between third, fourth and fifth narrowed considerably compared to Week 1, underscoring the intensity of voter engagement.
Which Leaders Strengthened Their Positions in the Middle Tier?
Brandon Daniels, CEO of Exiger, continued to lead the private-sector field, ranking sixth with 781 votes, up from 281.
Gen. Dan Caine of the Joint Chiefs of Staff ranked seventh with 746 votes, reflecting a substantial increase from his Week 1 total of 179 votes.
Breaking further into the top 10, Kelly Loeffler of the Small Business Administration earned eighth place with 419 votes, while Tang Pham of AT&T secured ninth place with 360 votes, marking one of the strongest Week 2 showings among industry executives.
Carey Smith of Parsons held the No. 10 ranking with 276 votes, as competition intensified within the top tier.
New entrant Adel Al-Saleh of SES debuted at 11th place with 254 votes, followed closely by Gen. Michael Guetlein of the U.S. Space Force in 12th place with 253 votes and Rohit Gupta of Aretum in 13th place with 250 votes.
DOW CIO Kirsten Davies ranked 14th with 245 votes, and Srini Attili of SAIC secured 15th place with 202 votes, rounding out the upper-middle portion of the leaderboard.
How Did the Lower Rankings Shape Up?
The lower half of the leaderboard featured tight clustering and several new faces.
John Phelan of the U.S. Department of the Navy ranked 16th with 188 votes, while new entrant John Heneghan of ECS followed in 17th place with 163 votes.
Hon. Michael Duffey of the Department of War secured 18th place with 162 votes, and DeEtte Gray of CACI ranked 19th with 159 votes. CACI CEO John Mengucci followed in 20th place with 143 votes.
CGI Federal President Stephanie Mango placed 21st with 140 votes, while Sonny Bhagowalia of DHS earned 22nd place with 124 votes. Secretary of the Army Daniel Driscoll ranked 23rd with 103 votes, and Barbara Supplee of SAIC secured 24th place with 99 votes.
New entrant Harish Luthra of SAP NS2 appeared in 25th place with 98 votes, while Lt. Gen. Michele Bredenkamp of NGA and La’Naia Jones of the CIA tied at 26th place with 97 votes each.
Lt. Gen. Joshua Rudd of the NSA ranked 28th with 95 votes, followed by Adm. Samuel Paparo of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command in 29th place with 93 votes, and Kathryn Wang of SandboxAQ rounding out the leaderboard in 30th place with 92 votes.
Week 2 demonstrated a sharp escalation in total votes and overall participation compared to Week 1. While public officials continued to dominate the top five, industry executives expanded their presence across the middle tiers, and new entrants quickly made their mark. With vote totals climbing rapidly and margins tightening, the Wash100 Popularity Vote contest remained highly competitive heading into the next round.
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