Lori Chavez-DeRemer, a former Republican representative from Oregon, was sworn in as the 30th U.S. Secretary of Labor on March 12, after being confirmed by the U.S. Senate a day earlier.
Chavez-DeRemer’s Senate confirmation received bipartisan support, passing with a 67-32 vote. Seventeen Democrats and 50 Republicans voted in favor of Chavez-DeRemer. Notably, Republicans voting Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Rand Paul of Kentucky, and Ted Budd of North Carolina voted against the confirmation.
The nomination of Chavez-DeRember was advanced in a procedural vote on March 6, with a 66-30 outcome. Fifteen Democrats joined all Republicans, except Paul, in voting to advance her nomination.
The U.S. Department of Labor is responsible for overseeing federal labor standards, enforcing labor laws, and addressing various labor-related matters.
Chavez-DeRemer held the position of mayor of Happy Valley, Oregon, from 2011 to 2018. Subsequently, she was elected as a Republican to the U.S. House of Representatives, serving a single term from 2023 to 2024. In 2024, she sought reelection to the 119th Congress (2025-2026) but was not successful.
Chavez-DeRemer, the daughter of a Teamster member, has a notable history of supporting labor unions during her tenure in the House of Representatives. While in Congress, she co-sponsored the Protecting the Right to Organize Act, a labor bill aimed at strengthening collective bargaining rights.
The Teamsters Union endorsed Chavez-DeRemer’s nomination, with Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien stating in a press release “As the daughter of a Teamster, Lori Chavez-DeRemer knows the importance of carrying a union card and what it means to grow up in a middle-class household.”
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