Senate Panel Advances Kash Patel’s FBI Nomination to Floor Vote

Patel, whose nomination has been opposed by Democrats, was approved by a vote of 12–10. His nomination now heads to the Senate floor.

Kash Patel, President Donald Trump’s nominee for director of the FBI, is sworn in during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington on Jan. 30, 2025. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump’s nomination of Kash Patel to be director of the FBI was advanced by the Senate Judiciary Committee on Feb. 13, setting up a final vote by the full Senate that would enable him to take office.

Patel, an attorney who served in several national security staff roles during the first Trump administration, was announced as Trump’s nominee for the post on Nov. 30, 2024.