Kristi Noem was confirmed Saturday as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.
The Senate voted 59-34 to confirm the former South Dakota governor, with Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Sen. Dan Sullivan both voting yes.
She succeeds Alejandro Mayorkas, who was in charge of President Joe Biden’s open-border policy that has brought millions of illegal immigrants, many of them violent criminals and suspected terrorists, into the country over the past four years.
Noem will be in charge of securing the borders, particularly the southern border, where the majority of illegal immigration occurs. But she’ll also need to focus on the border with Canada, which is increasingly becoming an entry point for bad actors.
Noem’s confirmation makes three out of three for President Donald Trump. On Friday, the vote for Pete Hegseth for Department of Defense came down to a tie, which was broken by a vote by Vice President JD Vance to complete Hegseth’s confirmation. Marco Rubio was the first confirmation; he is now secretary of State.
