The U.S. Senate voted to confirm Doug Burgum as secretary of the interior on Jan. 30, 2025. The Senate voted 79-18 in favor of his nomination with 25 Democrats, one independent who caucuses with Democrats, and all 53 Republicans voting in favor. This was the eighth member of President Donald Trump’s (R) Cabinet confirmed in his second presidential term. 

Trump announced on Nov. 14, 2024, that he had selected Burgum as his nominee for secretary of the interior. Trump said of Burgum’s nomination, “Doug Burgum will protect our Nation’s Natural Resources, restore our fabulous Oil and Gas advantage, and Make America, and its Energy, Dominant and Great Again!” The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee held a confirmation hearing for Burgum on January 16, 2025, and voted 18-2 to advance his nomination.

Burgum received a bachelor’s degree from North Dakota State University in 1978 and an M.B.A. from Stanford University in 1980. After graduating from business school, Burgum worked as a consultant at McKinsey & Company from 1980 to 1983. He founded Great Plains Software in 1983, which was acquired by Microsoft in 2001. He then worked at Microsoft as a senior vice president from 2001 to 2007. Burgum was the 33rd governor of North Dakota. He assumed office on December 15, 2016, and left office on December 15, 2024. He was last elected in the general election on November 3, 2020.

At the time of Burgum’s confirmation, he was the sixth of the main Cabinet secretaries to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate. At this point in Trump’s first term, two of the main 15 Cabinet secretaries had been confirmed.

At this point in the Biden administration, three of the main 15 Cabinet secretaries had been confirmed, and at this point in the Obama administration, 11 of the main 15 Cabinet secretaries had been confirmed.

A presidential Cabinet is a group of senior federal officials who advise the president on the issues and activities of their respective agencies. The number of officials in a Cabinet can vary across presidential administrations. While not explicitly identified in the Constitution, the Cabinet secretaries are the 15 agency heads who are in the presidential line of succession. The vice president is also part of the Cabinet.

During Trump’s second term, the following offices are also Cabinet-rank positions: White House chief of staff, the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, the U.S. trade representative, the director of the Central Intelligence Agency, the director of National Intelligence, the administrator of the Small Business Administration, and the ambassador to the United Nations.

Additional reading: Confirmation process for Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees, 2025