The Senate voted early Thursday morning to confirm Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the next secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, granting him sweeping authority over a U.S. health system he has long antagonized.
The vote was 52-48, nearly split along party lines. Sen. Mitch McConnell voted against Kennedy, after voting to advance his nomination on Wednesday.
His confirmation culminates a stunning rise to public health power for the nominee, the son of former Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of former President John F. Kennedy Jr.