The U.S. Senate confirmed Todd Blanche as attorney general early Saturday, August 8, 2026, in a 50-49 vote. Two Republicans voted against him along with every Democrat. The vote was recorded at 4:17 a.m. U.S. Senate

All Senate Democrats voted no, along with Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska. Collins said on August 4 that she would oppose him, which made it harder for Blanche to reach the 50 votes he needed. Reuters Sen. Mitch McConnell was absent, which narrowed the margin further. That made the vote of Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana the deciding one. Cassidy had recently lost his seat to a Trump-backed challenger but voted yes anyway. NPR

Blanche, of Florida, will serve as the 88th Attorney General of the United States. The attorney general is the country's top law enforcement official and runs the Justice Department. Blanche had been serving as acting attorney general after President Trump pushed out Pam Bondi. Before that, he was the Justice Department's No. 2 leader and Trump's personal lawyer. The White House sent his nomination to the Senate on June 8. White House Senate Judiciary Committee

The nomination process revealed disagreements among Senate Republicans over two Justice Department actions connected to a settlement between Trump and the IRS. The settlement was about the president's leaked tax returns.

The first action was a $1.8 billion fund called the Anti-Weaponization Fund. It was created to pay people who said the federal government had been weaponized, or used unfairly, against them. Republican Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, both leaving Congress, blocked the committee's vote on Blanche until he put in writing that the fund was dead.

On August 2, Blanche provided a written statement saying the order creating the fund "is rescinded and shall have no force or effect." That same day, the Justice Department issued a second statement about tax audit protections from the settlement. Those protections had shielded Trump, his family and his companies from any tax audits. NPR

Cassidy said his decision to back Blanche was not about supporting the president. But he said he had concerns about Blanche's judgment in exempting the president from IRS audits and about the DOJ filing lawsuits against people the president saw as political enemies. NPR

Blanche appeared at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on July 15. Sen. Chuck Grassley spoke ahead of the confirmation on August 7, pointing to falling crime numbers including a 73% drop in carjackings and a 56% drop in residential burglaries. Senate Judiciary Committee

The White House had pushed for a quick confirmation. A July 31 statement urged the Senate to confirm Blanche without delay. A July 14 statement said law enforcement leaders across the country supported him. White House White House

The confirmation vote ends a nomination fight that was less about Blanche's qualifications and more about the policy decisions he made as acting attorney general. The Anti-Weaponization Fund and the IRS audit exemptions, both from the Trump-IRS settlement, became the main issues. Cornyn and Tillis got written concessions before voting yes in committee. Collins cited the same concerns when she announced her opposition on August 4. Cassidy acknowledged those concerns too but provided the vote that confirmed Blanche.

The broader context here is that Trump-era Justice Department actions have become acceptable to senators only when nominees put in writing that they will undo those actions. Because Republicans hold such a narrow majority, individual senators have real power over nominees who need nearly every member of their party to say yes.