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How senators voted on Trump Cabinet nominees, 2025
This page compares how U.S. senators voted on President Donald Trump's (R) nominees for Cabinet and Cabinet-rank positions in 2025.
Twenty-one nominees had been confirmed, as of March 10, 2025. Eight senators were tied for the most votes (19) cast against Trump's Cabinet nominees.
- Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.)
- Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii)
- Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.)
- Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)
- Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.)
- Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.)
- Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.)
- Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.)
The most support from Democrats for Trump's nominees came from five Democrats who had voted to support 10 (48%) of Trump's nominees so far:
- Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.)
- Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.)
- Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.)
- Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.)
- Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)
One Republican, Mitch McConnell, voted against four nominees: Pete Hegseth for secretary of defense, Tulsi Gabbard for director of national intelligence, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for secretary of health and human services, and Lori Chavez-DeRemer for secretary of labor. Four other Republicans voted against one nominee. Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) voted against Hegseth and Sens. Ted Budd (R-N.C.) and Rand Paul (R-Ky.) voted against Chavez-DeRemer. According to an analysis by Wake Up To Politics' Gabe Fleisher, these votes account for a third of the 21 votes cast by senators against Cabinet nominations from a new president of their own party since 1989.[1]
One of Trump's Cabinet nominees was supported by all 47 Democratic senators and independent senators who caucus with Democrats: Marco Rubio for secretary of state. Six nominees received no supporting votes from any Democratic senators or independent senators who caucus with Democrats: Hegseth, Russell Vought for director of the Office of Management and Budget, Gabbard, Kennedy, Howard Lutnick for secretary of commerce, and Linda McMahon for secretary of education.
During Trump's first term in office, there was only one senator, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), who voted against at least 90% of his nominees, and there were 18 Democrats and independents who caucus with Democrats who supported at least 50% of his nominees. There were no Republican senators who voted against at least 90% of Joe Biden's nominees in 2021, and there were 26 Republicans who supported at least 50% of his nominees.
Click here to learn more about how senators voted on President Joe Biden's (D) Cabinet nominees.
Overview
The following table summarizes how each U.S. senator has voted on Trump's Cabinet nominees in 2025. Click any of the header titles to sort the table by that element.
Percentage support by senator
The following chart shows the range of percentage support among senators for Trump's Cabinet nominees. The chart includes senators who did not serve in office for all votes. It treats voice votes as unanimous Yea's. Among Democrats and independents who caucus with Democrats, seven senators supported over 40% of Trump's nominees, while 25 supported fewer than 20% of Trump's nominees.
Previous administrations
See the charts below to view the range of percentage support among senators for Cabinet nominees in previous administrations. The charts include senators who did not serve in office for all votes. The charts treat voice votes as unanimous Yea's.
Joe Biden (D) administration
Donald Trump (R) administration (first term)
Barack Obama (D) administration
George Bush (R) administration
About the confirmation process
- See also: Appointment confirmation process
The confirmation process includes several rounds of investigation and review, beginning with the submission of a personal financial disclosure report and a background check. The nominee is then evaluated in a committee hearing, which allows for a close examination of the nominee and his or her views on public policy. Supporters and opponents of the nominee may also testify.[2]
Once committee hearings are closed, most committees have a set amount of time before a vote is taken on whether the nominee is reported to the Senate favorably, unfavorably, or without recommendation. The nomination will then go to the Senate floor for consideration. Once the nomination is considered by the Senate, unlimited debate is allowed until a majority of the Senate votes to invoke cloture and close debate. Following a vote of cloture, the Senate conducts a simple majority vote on whether to confirm, reject, or take no action on the nomination.[3]
Trump Cabinet nominees
- See also: Donald Trump's Cabinet, 2025 and Confirmation process for Donald Trump's Cabinet nominees, 2025
The following table provides an overview of the status, confirmation hearings, and committee and Senate votes for each of Trump's Cabinet and Cabinet-rank nominees in his second term.
| Overview of confirmation process for Donald Trump's Cabinet nominees in his second term | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominee | Position | Announced | Senate committee | Confirmation hearing | Committee vote | Senate vote | Status |
| Marco Rubio | Secretary of State | November 13, 2024 | Foreign Relations | January 15, 2025 | Favorable (22-0) | 99-0 | Confirmed on January 20, 2025 |
| Scott Bessent | Secretary of the Treasury | November 22, 2024 | Finance | January 16, 2025 | Favorable (16-11) | 68-29 | Confirmed on January 27, 2025 |
| Pete Hegseth | Secretary of Defense | November 12, 2024 | Armed Services | January 14, 2025 | Favorable (14-13) | 51-50 | Confirmed on January 24, 2025 |
| Matt Gaetz | Attorney General | November 13, 2024 | Judiciary | N/A | N/A | N/A | Withdrawn on November 21, 2024 |
| Pam Bondi | Attorney General | November 21, 2024 | Judiciary | January 15-16, 2025 | Favorable (12-10) | 54-46 | Confirmed on February 4, 2025 |
| Doug Burgum | Secretary of the Interior | November 14, 2024 | Energy and Natural Resources | January 16, 2025 | Favorable (18-2) | 80-17 | Confirmed on January 30, 2025 |
| Brooke Rollins | Secretary of Agriculture | November 23, 2024 | Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry | January 23, 2025 | Favorable (23-0) | 72-28 | Confirmed on February 13, 2025 |
| Howard Lutnick | Secretary of Commerce | November 19, 2024 | Commerce, Science, and Transportation | January 29, 2025 | Favorable (16-12) | 51-45 | Confirmed on February 18, 2025 |
| Lori Chavez-DeRemer | Secretary of Labor | November 22, 2024 | Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions | February 19, 2025 | Favorable (13-9) | 67-32 | Confirmed on March 10, 2025 |
| Robert F. Kennedy Jr. | Secretary of Health and Human Services | November 14, 2024 | Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions / Finance |
January 30, 2025 / January 29, 2025 | N/A / Favorable (14-13) | 52-48 | Confirmed on February 13, 2025 |
| Scott Turner | Secretary of Housing and Urban Development | November 22, 2024 | Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs | January 16, 2025 | Favorable (13-11) | 55-44 | Confirmed on February 5, 2025 |
| Sean Duffy | Secretary of Transportation | November 18, 2024 | Commerce, Science, and Transportation | January 15, 2025 | Favorable (28-0) | 77-22 | Confirmed on January 28, 2025 |
| Chris Wright | Secretary of Energy | November 16, 2024 | Energy and Natural Resources | January 15, 2025 | Favorable (15-5) | 59-38 | Confirmed on February 3, 2025 |
| Linda McMahon | Secretary of Education | November 19, 2024 | Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions | February 13, 2025 | Favorable (12-11) | 51-45 | Confirmed on March 3, 2025 |
| Doug Collins | Secretary of Veterans Affairs | November 14, 2024 | Veterans' Affairs | January 21, 2025 | Favorable (18-1) | 77-23 | Confirmed on February 4, 2025 |
| Kristi Noem | Secretary of Homeland Security | November 12, 2024 | Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs | January 17, 2025 | Favorable (13-2) | 59-34 | Confirmed on January 25, 2025 |
| Jamieson Greer | U.S. Trade Representative | November 26, 2024 | Finance | February 6, 2025 | Favorable (15-12) | 56-43 | Confirmed on February 26, 2025 |
| Tulsi Gabbard | Director of National Intelligence | November 13, 2024 | Intelligence (Select) | January 30, 2025 | Favorable (9-8) | 52-48 | Confirmed on February 12, 2025 |
| Elise Stefanik | U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations | November 11, 2024 | Foreign Relations | January 21, 2025 | Favorable (Voice Vote) | N/A | Withdrawn on March 27, 2025 |
| Michael Waltz | U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations | May 1, 2025 | Foreign Relations | July 15, 2025 | Favorable (12-10) | TBD | Passed committee |
| Russell Vought | Director of the Office of Management and Budget | November 22, 2024 | Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs / Budget | January 15, 2025 / January 22, 2025 | Favorable (8-7) / Favorable (11-0) | 53-47 | Confirmed on February 6, 2025 |
| Lee Zeldin | Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency | November 11, 2024 | Environment and Public Works | January 16, 2025 | Favorable (11-8) | 56-42 | Confirmed on January 29, 2025 |
| Kelly Loeffler | Administrator of the Small Business Administration | December 4, 2024 | Small Business and Entrepreneurship | January 29, 2025 | Favorable (12-7) | 52-46 | Confirmed on February 19, 2025 |
| John Ratcliffe | Director of the Central Intelligence Agency | November 12, 2024 | Intelligence (Select) | January 15, 2025 | Favorable (14-3) | 74-25 | Confirmed on January 23, 2025 |
See also
- Donald Trump presidential administration, 2025
- Confirmation process for Donald Trump's Cabinet nominees, 2025
- Donald Trump's Cabinet, 2025
Footnotes
