Trump fires Noem as DHS secretary, nominates 2020 election skeptic Sen. Mullin to replace her

After her disastrous hearings before Congress this week, President Donald Trump announced that he would replace Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem with Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R) at the end of the month.

Noem’s removal as chief of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) marks the largest cabinet shakeup of Trump’s second term. Her demotion came after senators from both parties showed deep frustration with her leadership during her combative testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday.

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Because of the DHS’s role in election security, Mullin’s potential ascension will have significant implications for the future of free and fair elections in the U.S.

As a senator, Mullin has vigorously supported the SAVE America Act, the most restrictive anti-voting bill in U.S. history.

As a member of the House, he voted against certifying the 2020 presidential election results and supported legal efforts to overturn its outcome.

“Yesterday, I signed an amicus brief supporting the TX Attorney General’s lawsuit against PA, GA, MI, & WI, which challenges the results of the 2020 presidential election,” he wrote in a social media post in December 2020, weeks after the election.

“The American people must have faith in our election system & deserve certainty regarding the 2020 elections,” he added.

Just days before the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, Mullin wrote on social media that “due to all of the fraud and uncertainty surrounding the 2020 election there is no way I can vote to certify the Electoral College.”

There were no significant instances of fraud during the 2020 election.

Before the 2024 presidential election, Mullin refused to unequivocally say he would accept the results if Trump lost.

More recently, the senator staunchly defended Jonathan Ross, the federal immigration officer who shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in January.

Now that Trump has nominated him, Mullin must first be confirmed by the Senate to officially take the helm of DHS.

Before her firing, Noem reportedly particularly irked Trump by claiming in the Senate Judiciary Committee earlier this week that he signed off on a $220 million ad campaign that prominently featured her. The contract for the ad campaign was awarded to a Republican consulting firm with personal and financial ties to Noem.

Instead of DHS secretary, Trump said Noem will serve as “Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas,” a new security initiative in the Western Hemisphere he said he would announce this weekend.