WASHINGTON – Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, will vote for former Fox News host Pete Hegseth for Secretary of Defense, she announced Tuesday night after his first confirmation hearing.

Iowa Senator Joni Ernst announced that she would vote for Pete Hegseth to become Defense Secretary, making his path to Senate confirmation much easier.

The Iowa Republican’s decision dramatically increases the likelihood that Mr. Hegseth will have enough votes to be confirmed as President-elect Donald J. Trump’s defense secretary.

Sen. Joni Ernst’s support is a huge boost to Hegseth’s prospects, all but assuring his confirmation as defense secretary barring twists in the GOP-led Senate.

GOP Sen. Joni Ernst, a key vote on Pete Hegseth's confirmation as secretary of defense, said Tuesday she is supporting his nomination.

South Carolina's Lindsey Graham, a Trump confidant, has long been targeted by the far right in his state and was booed at a home-state rally during the 2024 presidential campaign. The Associated Press talked to people connected to five senators who have been targeted online or by rivals in their states.

President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team sees Sen. Joni Ernst’s support for Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth as crucial. A former Army National Guard commander, Ernst faced an avalanche of

Sen. Joni Ernst revealed she is officially supporting Pete Hegseth for Secretary of Defense after Tuesday's hearing.

Trump's got the bullhorn now to say, ‘MAGA nation is watching,’” said outgoing Dallas County Republican Party Chair Kelley Koch.

Joni Ernst had been seen as a key hurdle to Pete Hegseth’s confirmation. She approached her questions firmly but without confrontation Tuesday.

Iowa, noting "frank" conversations on Pentagon finances and sexual assault in the military, appeared supportive Pete Hegseth's confirmation as defense secretary.

More Trump nominees with potentially rocky paths to confirmation face hearings in the Senate this week, including Tulsi Gabbard, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Kash Patel.