Joni Ernst announced this week she will vote to confirm Pete Hegseth as the nation’s next secretary of defense, it underlined President-elect Donald Trump’s immense sway over Congress and the grassroots in Iowa as he returns to the White House.

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 senator supports Pete Hegseth for Defense secretary, despite allegations of assault and drinking — but she doesn’t want to talk about it.

Donald Trump's pick for Defense Secretary, Pete Hegseth, is facing stiff criticism from Democrats—but most Republicans back him.

Senator Joni Ernst (R., Iowa) quietly scored an early victory for those seeking to make the federal government more efficient under President-elect Donald Trump. Ernst secured a requirement in the Water Resources Development Act of 2024 to have the General Services Administration sell off the Wilbur J.

Pete Hegseth's path to becoming Donald Trump's Secretary of Defense looks much clearer now that Sen. Joni Ernst says he'll support his bid. But what did his contentious confirmation hearing tell us about the fate of Trump's other controversial picks for his administration?

As far as Pete Hegseth’s nomination for secretary of Defense goes, Senator Joni Ernst was the ball game, and it was over in the second inning. Given her years of advocacy on behalf of women in the military and against sexual assault,

Three days ahead of Trump’s return to the White House, many of his most prominent Cabinet choices have sailed relatively unscathed through their hearings and are poised to win confirmation as Republican senators rallied around them and appeared largely unwilling to defy Trump’s wishes.

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.

As a rape survivor and advocate for tackling sexual assault in the military, Ernst's support for Hegseth had seemed uncertain due to allegations of sexual assault against him.

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

David Axelrod said Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman could be among those who will support some of Trump's Cabinet picks.