US Senate confirms Marcia Fudge as Housing and Urban Development secretary

The US Senate on Wednesday voted to confirm Ohio Democratic Representative Marcia Fudge as secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), adding another African American woman to the ranks of President Joe Biden's Cabinet.

According to The Hill, Senators approved Fudge's nomination to be HUD secretary on a 66-34 vote. She will be the first woman to hold the position since 1979 and the second Black woman and the third woman ever to lead the department.

Fudge vowed during her confirmation process to turn HUD around at a critical moment for the U.S. with a special focus on narrowing the racial inequities in the housing market that have been deepened by Covid-19.

"My first priority as secretary would be to alleviate that crisis and get people the support they need to come back from the edge," she said during her Senate confirmation hearing in January, as quoted by CNN.

She argued that Americans need more than an extension of the eviction moratorium and Congress's provision of USD 25 billion in rental assistance.

CNN reported that during the hearing, the Ohio Democrat also faced scrutiny from Republican Sen. Patrick Toomey, who said he was troubled by past comments she made "attacking and disparaging the integrity and motives of Republican officials with whom you have policy disagreements."

Toomey, who chaired the Senate Banking Committee at the time, also raised concerns with Fudge's lack of background in housing policy. Fudge responded by arguing that she has a bipartisanship record and the "ability and capacity to work with Republicans, and I intend to do just that."

( With inputs from ANI )