Deb Haaland as she is sworn is as U.S. secretary of the interior on Thursday, March 18, 2021. (Shawn Thew/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Deb Haaland became the Secretary of the Interior after a confirmation vote of 51-40 in early March, picking up votes from every Democrat in attendance and Republican Sens. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Dan Sullivan (Alaska), Susan Collins (Maine) and Lindsey Graham (S.C.).
Haaland, a former member of Congress for New Mexico and a member of the Laguna Pueblo tribe, is now the first Native American to helm the Department of the Interior, which encompasses the Bureau of Indian Affairs and is responsible for the conservation of federal lands across the country.
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In historic vote, Senate confirms Haaland at Interior
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WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 24: Rep. Deb Haaland (D-NM), nominee for Secretary of the Interior, testifies at her confirmation hearing before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee February 24, 2021 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.
The U.S. Senate voted to confirm Deb Haaland as Secretary of the Interior on a 51-40
vote Monday afternoon.
With the vote, Haaland, an enrolled member of the Laguna Pueblo, became the first Native American cabinet-level official in U.S. history and put her in charge of a sprawling department with key interactions with sovereign tribal governments. The Interior Department is the parent agency of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.