WASHINGTON, March 2 (Xinhua) -- Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo on Tuesday was confirmed by the Senate as the next U.S. commerce secretary, about two months after President Joe Biden's announcement of the nomination.
The upper chamber of Congress approved her nomination in a 84-15 vote. Raimondo, a 49-year-old former venture capitalist, will cut short her second term as governor of Rhode Island and is expected to be sworn in Wednesday.
Biden, in his remarks announcing Raimondo's nomination, highlighted that she is "a daughter of a working-class family" who knows what it's like when a parent's factory job is shipped overseas. During her confirmation hearing, Raimondo said she would enhance efforts to revitalize U.S. manufacturing.
Raimondo also underscored structural inequities facing minorities and families with lower incomes, stressing the need for the commerce department to support businesses and workers in a pandemic-ravaged economy. Enditem