The full Senate voted 48-47 on Monday evening to approve Miran’s nomination to the Fed board. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) joined Democrats in voting against him. Miran, 42, will succeed Fed governor Adriana Kugler, who unexpectedly stepped aside last month.
Miran, who is chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, would serve the remainder of Kugler’s term, which ends early next year.
The confirmation comes just hours before the Federal Open Market Committee votes on what to do with interest rates. They FOMC has held rates steady all of 2025, although now appears poised to cut after it meets on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Miran’s confirmation will deliver Trump one more seat on the Fed board echoing his call for lower interest rates. Trump has been hounding the Fed to cut for months now, and jumped at the opportunity to put a new pick on the board once Kugler stepped aside.
Still, Trump’s push for lower interest rates has caused some backlash from Democrats and Fed watchers who argue that the president needs to heed the historic buffer between the White House and central bank.
The Fed is designed to be independent of the executive, and during his confirmation hearing, Miran vowed to continue that legacy if confirmed. He faced questions about how he would approach the role and the Fed’s independence more broadly during his confirmation hearing before the committee.
“If confirmed, I plan to dutifully carry out my role pursuant to the mandates assigned by Congress,” Miran told lawmakers. “My opinions and decisions will be based on my analysis of the macro economy and what’s best for its long-term stewardship.”
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Miran said central bank independence is of “paramount importance” for the economy, financial markets, and long-term stewardship of the country.
Yet Miran also told senators that he would not resign from his role at the CEA if he were confirmed to the Fed but would rather go on leave. Democrats argued that such a deal would mean that Miran would not be independent of the Trump administration and could allow Miran to return to the CEA when the Fed term expires in early 2026.
