Washington — The Senate appears poised to confirm Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services Thursday, following weeks of questions surrounding whether the controversial nominee would win the Senate’s approval.
After all Republicans voted to advance Kennedy’s nomination in a procedural vote Wednesday, the final vote is scheduled for Thursday morning.
Kennedy, 71, is a longtime environmental lawyer and anti-vaccine activist whose family has mythic status in Democratic politics. The nephew of President John F. Kennedy and the son of Robert F. Kennedy launched his own White House bid in 2023. And although he initially sought the Democratic nomination, Kennedy changed his bid to independent, before dropping out to endorse President Trump in August.
Before entering politics, Kennedy worked for two decades as president of the Waterkeeper Alliance, a nonprofit. He also founded Children’s Health Defense, which has launched legal challenges against vaccine requirements and approvals, and served as its chairman beginning in 2016. Kennedy is married to actor Cheryl Hines. He has six children.
If confirmed, Kennedy would be at the helm of the sprawling HHS department, which includes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the Food and Drug Administration.
RFK Jr.’s path to confirmation
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Donald Trump’s nominee to be secretary of Health and Human Services, testifies during his Senate Finance Committee confirmation hearing in Dirksen building on Wednesday, January 29, 2025. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
After Mr. Trump picked Kennedy for HHS secretary, pledging on the campaign trail to let him
Senate to vote on RFK Jr.’s confirmation as HHS secretary
