The Senate on Thursday voted 64-35 to confirm former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm as the 16th secretary of energy.
Later in the evening Granholm was sworn into office by Vice President Kamala Harris.
Fourteen Republican senators, including Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) and former Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chair Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), joined every Democrat in supporting Granholm’s nomination. Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) did not vote.
The ENR Committee on Feb. 3 voted 13-4 to advance Granholm’s nomination, but only three other Republican members of the committee joined Murkowski in voting “aye” on the Senate floor: Steve Daines (Mont.), John Hoeven (N.D.) and James Risch (Idaho). (See “Granholm Approved for Senate Floor Vote,” EPA Nominee Regan Receives Bipartisan Support.)
Before Thursday’s vote, the committee’s ranking member, Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), repeated his criticism of President Biden’s energy-related executive orders, including his ban on new oil and gas drilling leases on federal lands, saying he could not “in good conscience” vote for Granholm. Still, he praised her personally and expressed confidence in her ability to run the Energy Department.
The Senate on Wednesday had voted 67-32 to invoke cloture on the nomination, setting up Thursday’s vote.
Granholm “has the leadership skills, the vision and the compassion for people that we need at the helm of the Department of Energy to face the climate challenge,” ENR Chair Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) said before the vote. “I believe she is extremely well-qualified to lead the Department of Energy.”
The American Clean Power Association “congratulates Secretary Granholm on taking the helm of the Department of Energy,” CEO Heather Zichal said in a statement. “Having worked on energy policy with Secretary Granholm, I know that she is committed to the Biden administration’s interlinked goals of boosting the U.S. economy and combating climate change.”
“We look forward to working with her and other leaders across the administration to build on the existing partnership that has enabled the electric power industry to respond quickly and decisively to all manners of threats to the grid,” the Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council said.
“There are a great many challenges and opportunities facing the energy sector as we transition to the grid of the future and confront climate change,” FERC Chairman Richard Glick tweeted. “I know you will do an outstanding job leading the Department of Energy!”
