Henry Wooster: Profile of US ambassador nominee to Kenya
By Emmanuel Rono, June 2, 2026The United States President Donald Trump has nominated veteran diplomat Henry Wooster to serve as the next US Ambassador to Kenya.
If approved by the Senate, Wooster will serve as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States to Kenya, succeeding the current diplomatic leadership in Nairobi.
Wooster will succeed former Ambassador Meg Whitman, who stepped down in 2024 after serving two years in Nairobi following Trump’s return to office.
A seasoned diplomat in U.S. foreign service
At the time of his nomination on June 1, 2026, he was serving as Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, effectively acting as the top U.S. diplomat in the country.
Before his current role, he served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs. He was the U.S. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan from September 2020 to July 2023 and is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service.
Earlier in his career, he held the position of Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for the Maghreb and Egypt. His extensive diplomatic experience includes serving as Deputy Chief of Mission in Paris; Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Amman; and Political Counsellor at the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad.
He has also held senior policy and advisory roles, including Director for Central Asia at the National Security Council, Foreign Policy Advisor to the Commanding General of the U.S. Joint Special Operations Command, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Iran, and Director of the Office of Iranian Affairs.
His additional assignments include Deputy Director of the Office of Provincial Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Special Assistant to Deputy Secretary Jack Lew, Deputy Director and Iran Desk Officer in the Office of Iranian Affairs, Political Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, Executive Officer at the U.S. Mission to NATO, Desk Officer in the Office of Russian Affairs, Consul at the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince, and Political Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Tbilisi.
Education
Wooster holds a Master of Arts degree from Yale University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Amherst College.
Henry Wooster’s nomination
United States President Donald Trump has nominated veteran diplomat Henry Wooster to serve as the next US ambassador to Kenya, according to a nomination notice submitted to the US Senate on June 1, 2026.
The White House has described Wooster as a career member of the Senior Foreign Service with the rank of minister-counsellor.
“Henry Wooster, of Virginia, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counsellor, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Kenya,” the notice reads.