Combat veteran Joni Ernst announced she would vote for Hegseth, who has said he opposes women having combat roles.

Pete Hegseth spent several hours in front of the Senate, where Democrats repeatedly questioned his fitness for the position of secretary of defense.

Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) pressed Hegseth on whether he would resign if he drank in office (he declined to answer directly) and Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) gave the former Fox host a pop quiz, asking him to name nations in ASEAN (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations), which he failed to do.