Lee Zeldin, the former Republican congressman from New York, was officially confirmed on Wednesday by the Senate as the new administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under President Donald Trump. His confirmation received cross-party support.
The final vote was 56-42, with Democratic Senators Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego from Arizona, along with John Fetterman from Pennsylvania, joining all 53 Republicans in backing Zeldin.
The 44-year-old ex-congressman had sailed through the Senate’s vetting process in the Environment and Public Works Committee. He also passed a procedural vote on the Senate floor earlier on Thursday, maintaining the same 56-42 result and with the same Democratic senators supporting him.

In his confirmation hearing, Zeldin, who had previously served in Suffolk County and was a candidate for governor of New York in 2022, highlighted his track record in combating pollution and improving water quality in his home state. He emphasized that his approach at the EPA would aim to balance environmental protection with economic growth, saying it would focus on “protecting our environment, while also protecting our economy.”
Zeldin took aim at the policies of President Joe Biden, accusing him of “suffocating the economy.” He expressed his intent to lead an EPA that would work to “harness the greatness of American innovation with the greatness of American conservation and environmental stewardship,” signaling a commitment to policies different from those of Biden’s administration.
Once in office, President Trump had signed executive orders aimed at boosting domestic oil and gas production, fulfilling a campaign promise made in 2024, and declaring a national energy emergency. In contrast, Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris sought to move the country toward a goal of net-zero emissions by 2050, halting liquefied natural gas exports, blocking or delaying oil and gas pipelines, and attempting to stop new drilling permits on federal lands.
Biden’s 2022 Inflation Reduction Act allocated billions of dollars toward environmental initiatives, but Zeldin told the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee during his hearing that he would remain unswayed by the fossil fuel industry’s lobbying efforts. He also distanced himself from Trump’s stance on climate change.
“There is no dollar — large or small — that can influence the decisions that I make, who has access to me and how I am ruling in my obligations under the law,” Zeldin stated, addressing concerns raised by Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI). He also assured Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) that he acknowledges climate change as real, suggesting that Trump’s previous dismissals of climate change as a “hoax” were a reaction to the economic costs tied to certain policies.
Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) expressed her hope that Zeldin, as the new EPA head, would address the rising energy costs and blackouts linked to an over-reliance on renewable energy sources.
In his response, Zeldin assured Capito and other committee members that the EPA under his leadership would prioritize both “the cleanest” and “greenest” energy solutions, but without imposing overly restrictive regulations on energy producers.
In nominating Zeldin, Trump praised his “very strong legal background,” noting that it would help him make “fair and swift deregulatory decisions,” all while upholding the highest standards of environmental protection.
{Matzav.com}