Trump inauguration: Michelle Obama and Justin Trudeau are out, Elon Musk is in. Here’s who attended Trump’s inauguration — and who didn’t.

Donald Trump has officially been sworn in as the 47th president of the United States, and much can be gleaned about the upcoming administration by who was in attendance at Monday’s ceremony, who wasn’t — and who declined to take part. Due to unusually cold temperatures in the U.S. Capitol on Monday, Trump directed most of the outdoor events to take place indoors. Ahead of the inauguration, officials held a rehearsal Sunday in the U.S. Capitol’s Rotunda, which holds 600 people, compared to the 250,000-plus guests who had tickets to view Trump swearing-in on Capitol grounds. A number of politicians, former presidents and first ladies, and government officials have made appearances at Monday’s ceremony. Former President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, who lost the presidential election to Trump, are in attendance alongside their spouses Jill Biden and Doug Emhoff, respectively. That’s in contrast to Biden’s own inauguration four years ago, from which Trump and wife Melania were notably absent. Former president Barack Obama is also in attendance, without former first lady Michelle Obama who announced last week she would forgo the event, but did not provide an explanation for her absence. She also skipped Jimmy Carter’s state funeral last week. Also in attendance is former Vice President Mike Pence, former presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, and former first ladies Hillary Clinton and Laura Bush. Pence and the Clintons were met with significant boos from the crowd as they moved toward the rotunda. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau sat the event out. He and his cabinet were expected to be at a retreat Monday in preparation for Trump’s threatened 25 per cent tariffs, which Trump had promised to put in place immediately after assuming office. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, who visited Trump in Mar-a-Lago last week, also did not attend due to bitter cold weather. Smith, who is spending five days in Washington on a diplomatic trip, was scheduled to attend the event, but her press secretary, Sam Blackett, said in a statement that most ticketed guests would be unable to attend the ceremony in-person after it was moved indoors. 

The premier caused some controversy last week after refusing to sign off on a joint statement with other premiers and Trudeau that said every countermeasure was on the table to push back any proposed duties. Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne was inside the Capitol on Monday, watching the swearing-in with a number of Republican governors from Emancipation Hall, an overflow room, where the ceremony was shown on a big screen. He is among the Canadian leaders who criticized Trump’s comments about making Canada the 51st state and using “economic force.” Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey, whose province is an oil producer, was expected to attend but it is unclear if he did. Furey has said Canada should make sure the U.S. is aware of its critical reliance on Canadian energy but not pull back on those exports just yet. Other Canadian leaders, including federal Trade Minister Mary Ng, Liberal MP John McKay, and Ontario ministers of energy, Stephen Lecce, and trade, Vic Fedeli, were set to attend an inauguration day reception hosted by Canada’s ambassador to the U.S., Kirsten Hillman.. Monday’s ceremony was the first that saw foreign leaders in attendance. Argentine President Javier Milei and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni were present on Monday. Milei, the first foreign leader to meet with Trump after his recent election victory, was also scheduled to attend three inaugural galas over the weekend. 

Meloni sat in the front row in the U.S. Capitol rotunda on Monday. While Meloni kept unexpectedly good relations with Biden, she is likely to form a more natural alliance with Trump. Chinese President Xi Jinping was the first foreign leader whose invitation to the inauguration was made public. Xi, however, did not attend but instead sent Vice President Han Zheng in his place. Han’s appearance comes as the rivalry between the U.S. and China stands to escalate under the Trump administration. Several of Trump’s Cabinet picks are known China hawks, including Rubio, who has called China “the most potent, dangerous and near-peer adversary this nation has ever confronted.” Trump has vowed to impose tariffs and other measures on China. Despite this, the two leaders spoke on the phone on Friday and discussed trade, fentanyl and TikTok. Trump said the call was a “very good one.” India’s Minister of External Affairs, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, was also in attendance. It was “a great honour to represent India” at the event, he posted on X. Nayib Bukele and Daniel Noboa, presidents of El Salvador and Ecuador, respectively, were also in attendance on Monday. Brazil’s indicted former president Jair Bolsonaro revealed he too received an invitation, but could not attend after being barred from leaving the country. President of France, Emmanuel Macron, who met with Trump last month in Paris during the reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral, was not present. Hungary’s Viktor Orban was invited as well, but did not attend. Taiwan sent legislative speaker Han Kuo-yu and seven others to Washington for Trump’s inauguration, but Taiwan’s foreign ministry said its delegates would not attend the ceremony now that it has been moved indoors. Taiwan’s official Central News Agency, citing Taiwan’s foreign ministry, also reported that the delegates would meet American politicians and think tank scholars to cement Taiwan-U. S. relations, but It’s unclear if they will meet Trump. 

Notably, Russia’s Vladimir Putin did not receive an invitation, Kremlin sources said. Neither did Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy, despite saying he wished to attend. Wayne and Janet Gretzky were among the celebrities in attendance on Monday. “We are so very proud,” Janet wrote under a photo alongside Wayne shared on Instagram. “We love America, We love Canada. God Bless everyone!” A smattering of tech billionaires were also spotted at the ceremony, including major Trump donor Elon Musk, who will be heading the new Department of Government Efficiency, alongside Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, and TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew. Meta and Amazon have each pledged to donate $1 million to Trump’s inauguration fund. Altman has personally given $1 million to the fund, after previously donating to Biden’s 2024 presidential campaign. Two CEOs of artificial intelligence companies, OpenAI’s Sam Altman and ScaleAI’s Alexandr Wang, were amongst guests from the tech industry in attendance on Monday. Podcast host Joe Rogan was also at the ceremony. After President Trump was sworn in, eight-time Grammy winner Carrie Underwood, the most high-profile of the artists who gave performances Monday, sang a rendition of “America the Beautiful.” After an issue with the band, Underwood proceeded to give an a capella performance. Two of Trump’s favourite artists, country singer Lee Greenwood and opera singer Christopher Macchio, were also in attendance to offer performances on Monday. Greenwood sand ‘God Bless the U. S. A,’ which he also performed at the 2017 inauguration. The song has been a staple at Republican rallies and conventions since Ronald Reagan was president. Last year, Greenwood made headlines when he teamed up with Trump to launch the “God Bless the USA Bible,” which supporters can buy for $59.99. Macchio, an international classical-crossover vocalist who has sang for Trump for years, preformed the national anthem. Village People, who were behind Trump’s beloved hit “Y.M.C.A.,” also performed at multiple pre-inauguration events, while artists Kid Rock, Billy Ray Cyrus, Snoop Dogg, Rick Ross and Rascal Flatts are set to appear at events across the four days of festivities.