--- description: The White House just released the list, which includes astronaut and TIME cover star Scott Kelly title: Here's Michelle Obama's State of the Union Guest List image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6f084b4528f32c4b/69877aad0b72e3856c6dd352/michelle-obama.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Politics](/section/politics/) ## Politics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [White House](/tag/white-house/) ## White House Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Here's Michelle Obama's State of the Union Guest List  by [Nolan Feeney](/author/nolan-feeney/)  ## Nolan Feeney Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 19, 2015 3:14 PM CUT  First lady Michelle Obama speaks to supporters during a rally in New Haven, Conn on Oct. 30, 2014. First lady Michelle Obama speaks to supporters during a rally in New Haven, Conn on Oct. 30, 2014.Jessica Hill—AP  by [Nolan Feeney](/author/nolan-feeney/)  ## Nolan Feeney Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 19, 2015 3:14 PM CUT The White House has released its list of the 22 special guests who will be seated in First Lady Michelle Obama’s box for President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address on Tuesday. The list includes high-profile names such as astronaut and [TIME magazine cover star Scott Kelly](http://time.com/meet-the-twins-unlocking-the-secrets-of-space/ "undefined"), who will spend a year in space, and the president and CEO of CVS Health, Larry J. Merlo. Other guests include Captain Phillip C. Tingirides of the Los Angeles Police Department; Catherine Pugh, Maryland Senate Majority Leader; Kathy Pham, a computer scientist with the United States Digital Service; and Alan Gross, a USAID sub-contractor who was reunited with his family after five years of imprisonment in Cuba the same day the U.S. announced it would begin to normalize diplomatic relations with the country. ### See Michelle Obama's Best Outfits of 2014  After being criticized for wearing a sparkly sleeveless dress to the 2013 State of the Union, Obama went with a more conservative ensemble by Azzedine Alaia for the 2014 State of the Union Address. Drew Angerer—EPA  Never one to shy away from color, Obama donned a bold red coat for a visit from French President Francois Hollande in February. Pete Marovich—Bloomberg/Getty Images  Obama won plaudits for this powder blue and black lace gown by Carolina Herrera, which she wore to a state dinner with Hollande in February. Evan Vucci—AP  During a visit to Beijing in March to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Obama wore a custom dress by Naeem Khan which updated the traditional Chinese red dress — and her daughters didn't look too bad either. Andy Wong—Pool/AFP/Getty Images  The first lady doesn't just own formal wear. For this visit to a Beijing school that prepares children to study abroad, she dressed casually, but with flair. Andy Wong—Pool/Getty Images  For this February appearance on "The Tonight Show" with Jimmy Fallon, Obama went with a sleeveless jumpsuit, showing off her toned arms. NBC/Getty Images  The White House Correspondents' Dinner is often jokingly called Nerd Prom, but Obama's choice of a grey tulle embroidered dress from Marchesa was neither nerdy nor prom-like. Olivier Douliery—Pool/Getty Images  The devil may wear Prada, but Obama went for another Naeem Khan when she met fashionista Anna Wintour at a ribbon-cutting in May. Paul Zimmerman—WireImage/Getty Images  Returning from the dedication of the National September 11 Memorial and Museum, Obama aimed for a subdued but still classy look. Saul Loeb—AFP/Getty Images  The president may have gone for jeans, but Michelle Obama was ready for summer, wearing a crisp white summer dress to the White House Fourth of July celebration. Brendan Smialowski—AFP/Getty Images  For a luncheon at The Grammy Museum in July, Obama once again went sleeveless in a white dress from Phillip Lim. Jason LaVeris—FilmMagic/Getty Images  During a visit to New York for the United Nations General Assembly, Obama wore a colorful wrap from Diane von Furstenberg. Saul Loeb—AFP/Getty Images  At an awards dinner held by the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Obama chose a dress from Bibhu Mohapatra's fall collection. Nicholas Kamm—AFP/Getty Images  No ugly Christmas sweaters in sight as Obama, daughters Malia and Sasha and the family dogs greet the White House Christmas tree. Joshua Roberts—Bloomberg/Getty Images  Ending the year in style, and mirroring the White House Christmas decorations, Obama wore this dress by Monique Lhuiller to the Kennedy Center honors in December. Brendan Smialowski—AFP/Getty Images ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3673570/state-of-the-union-michelle-obama-guest-list/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3673570/state-of-the-union-michelle-obama-guest-list/"},"headline":"Here's Michelle Obama's State of the Union Guest List","datePublished":"2015-01-19T15:14:05.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:06:08.892Z","description":"The White House just released the list, which includes astronaut and TIME cover star Scott Kelly","url":"https://time.com/3673570/state-of-the-union-michelle-obama-guest-list/","keywords":["White House","Michelle Obama","state of the union"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6f084b4528f32c4b/69877aad0b72e3856c6dd352/michelle-obama.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Nolan Feeney","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/nolan-feeney/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6f084b4528f32c4b/69877aad0b72e3856c6dd352/michelle-obama.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Michelle Obama","caption":"Michelle Obama","creditText":"Jessica Hill—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/white-house/","name":"White House"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3673570/state-of-the-union-michelle-obama-guest-list/","name":"Here's Michelle Obama's State of the Union Guest List"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"50 Years Of The State Of The Union In 5 Minutes","description":"The best of the State Of The Union speeches from FDR to Barack Obama.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/cVt1XJAO/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2014-01-28T15:47:05.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/cVt1XJAO.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3673570/state-of-the-union-michelle-obama-guest-list/","duration":"PT5M18S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3673570/state-of-the-union-michelle-obama-guest-list/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```