The U.S. Senate has yet to confirm 156 civilian nominations submitted by President Donald Trump. The figures cover appointments to various positions in the federal administration, the judiciary, the diplomatic service, and independent agencies.
Most Pending Nominations Have Not Reached a Committee
Of the 156 current nominations, 122 have yet to receive a vote in the relevant committee. They include nominations for heads of federal agencies, members of regulatory bodies, judges, and ambassadors.
Among the nominations that have been pending the longest is that of Douglas Holder for U.S. ambassador to Bulgaria. It has been before the Senate for 159 days without a final decision. The list also includes nominations for ambassadors to Chad, Benin, Mauritania, Tonga, and Nicaragua.
In total, during the current Congress, the Senate has received 938 civilian nominations from Trump. Of these, 618 have been confirmed, while 164 have been returned, withdrawn, or concluded through another procedure.
The Senate Has Already Expedited Some Appointments
The hold-up of the nominations sparked a dispute between Republicans and Democrats as early as 2025. After the list grew to 161 nominations, the Senate confirmed more than 100 nominations on August 7, and on September 18 it approved another 48 under a new expedited procedure.
New nominations were confirmed on September 30, including appointments to diplomatic posts and Keith Sonderling as secretary of labor. Nevertheless, a significant number of nominations remained stalled.
Following the midterm elections, Republicans are seeking to finalize as many nominations as possible before the start of the new Congress on January 3. Democrats, who will have a stronger position in the Senate during the next term, have already signaled that they will subject the president’s future nominations to stricter scrutiny.
Sources: chamberlight.com, apnews.com, aol.com