Washington — Just short of two months after President Trump’s inauguration, the Senate, led by Republicans, has largely confirmed almost all of his Cabinet nominees.
A vote is still pending for the last nominee — Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, who is set to take on the role of ambassador to the United Nations. With House Republicans holding a slim one-vote majority, losing another member is not an option. Special elections to fill two vacant seats are scheduled for April 1, which should provide additional leeway for Stefanik’s anticipated exit.
There are 22 Cabinet positions that require Senate confirmation. CBS News also factored in the contentious vote for FBI director, although this position is not considered part of the Cabinet.
Most Republicans aligned with the party’s stance, even after some raised concerns about President Trump’s more contentious nominees. Meanwhile, few Democrats were inclined to support them, particularly as the president sought to revamp the federal agencies overseen by these nominees.
Here’s how the votes broke down among party lines:
A small group of Democrats backed nearly half of the nominees. Senators John Fetterman from Pennsylvania, Ruben Gallego from Arizona, Maggie Hassan from New Hampshire, John Hickenlooper from Colorado, and Jeanne Shaheen from New Hampshire each cast votes in favor of 10 of Trump’s nominees.
Ten Democrats supported just one of Trump’s nominees — Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who previously served Florida in the Senate before his confirmation. Rubio was confirmed mere hours after Trump’s inauguration and was the only nominee to receive unanimous support. However, at least two of the Democrats who only voted for Rubio — Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut and Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland — later expressed regret for their vote due to the Trump administration’s actions concerning Ukraine.
In addition to Rubio, seven other nominees received meaningful backing from Democrats: Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer.
For more details on how each Democrat voted for every nominee, click here.
Only five of the 53 Republicans in the Senate broke ranks to vote against at least one of the president’s nominees.
Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky led the dissenters with four “no” votes against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and Chavez-DeRemer.
Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska also opposed Hegseth, which required Vice President JD Vance to cast the deciding vote. Additionally, Collins and Murkowski declined to support Kash Patel, who was confirmed as FBI director by a narrow margin.
Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, known for his independent stance, voted against Jamieson Greer as U.S. trade representative and Chavez-DeRemer.
Sen. Ted Budd of North Carolina registered his sole “no” vote against Chavez-DeRemer.
To date, 40 Republican senators have consistently supported all nominees, while eight others backed them whenever present.
For additional insights on how each Republican voted on every nominee, click here.
