JD Vance's first big VP moment on the horizon with possible cabinet tiebreaker vote

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Pete Hegseth came out of Senate confirmation hearing in a ‘great position,’ says GOP senator

Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., reacts to Trump defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth’s Senate confirmation hearing on ‘Fox News Live.’

JD Vance's first big moment as vice president is on the horizon as the Senate prepares confirmation votes on President Donald Trump's picks to lead the CIA and Defense Department, which could require Vance stepping in with a tiebreaking vote. 

Under the Constitution, vice presidents serve as the president of the Senate and are charged with the sole power of breaking tied votes in the chamber. Vance, who previously served in the Senate before his election as vice president, could employ this power in the coming days as lawmakers make their way through Trump's cabinet picks. 

Senate lawmakers swiftly and unanimously confirmed Marco Rubio as secretary of state in a 99–0 vote on Monday. Other cabinet and administration picks, however, are still making their way through committee hearings and final votes. 

Senate lawmakers are set to vote on Trump's pick for CIA director, John Ratcliffe, before voting on Trump's pick to lead the Department of Defense, Pete Hegseth. Fox News learned earlier this week that lawmakers could deadlock on the confirmation vote for Hegseth, which would require Vance to step in. 

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Under the Constitution, vice presidents serve as the president of the Senate and are charged with the sole power of breaking tied votes in the chamber. The first big vice presidential moment for JD Vance, pictured here, may be a tiebreaking vote.? (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Republicans hold control of the Senate at 53 seats, compared to Democrats' 45 seats and two independent seats. Fox News was told that Sens. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, could break with Trump's secretary of defense nominee and vote against his confirmation.  

Ratcliffe is scheduled for a confirmation vote Thursday, which will be followed by a procedural vote to advance Hegseth's nomination. Vance could be called to Capitol Hill to break a tied vote if a handful of Republicans deny confirming the nominees. 

Ratcliffe previously served as director of national intelligence under the first Trump administration, and was confirmed by the Senate in 2020 by a 49–44 vote. 

Kamala Harris broke a nearly 200-year-old record for casting the most tiebreaking votes in her role as vice president when she issued her 32nd tiebreaking vote in 2023 regarding the confirmation of a federal judge. Democrats only had a 51-member majority over Republicans, who had a 49-person conference, during the 118th Congress.

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The first Trump administration made history in 2017 when Mike Pence became the first vice president to deliver a tiebreaking vote to confirm a cabinet secretary. Pence voted to confirm Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education after a 50–50 deadlock over the nominee. Pence also broke tie votes in 2018 to confirm Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., as ambassador for religious freedom and to confirm Russ Vought as deputy director for the Office of Management and Budget. 

Kamala Harris broke a nearly 200-year-old record for casting the most tiebreaking votes in her role as vice president when she issued her 32nd in 2023.? (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Vance could see himself in a similar position as Republicans hold a tight majority in the chamber. 

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Hegseth appeared before the Senate Armed Services Committee last week, where he faced a grilling from Democrats over his views on women serving in combat roles, infidelity and drinking habits. 

Hegseth, a former Fox News host, has battled allegations of sexual misconduct, excessive drinking and mismanaging a veterans nonprofit organization. He has denied the allegations and vowed that he won't drink "a drop of alcohol" if confirmed to Trump's cabinet.

Senate lawmakers are set to vote on Trump's pick for CIA director, John Ratcliffe, before voting on Trump's pick to lead the Department of Defense, Pete Hegseth, pictured here.? (Ben Curtis/The Associated Press)

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"Thank you to my incredible wife, Jennifer, who has changed my life and been with me throughout this entire process. I love you, sweetheart, and I thank God for you," Hegseth said before the committee on Jan. 14, beginning to choke up in his emotional opening remarks. 

"And as Jenny and I pray together every morning, all glory, regardless of the outcome, belongs to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ," he said. "His grace and mercy abounds each day. May His will be done."

JD Vance, who previously served in the Senate before his election as vice president, could employ this power in the coming days as lawmakers make their way through Trump's cabinet picks.? (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Earlier this week, Democratic senators on the Armed Services Committee reviewed an affidavit that alleged Hegseth abused alcohol and, at times, made his ex-wife, Samantha, fear for her safety. The affidavit was filed by Danielle Hegseth, who was married to Pete Hegseth's brother.

Pete Hegseth's lawyer pushed back in a statement that Hegseth's ex-wife has never alleged abuse.  

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"Sam has never alleged that there was any abuse," attorney Tim Parlatore said in a comment to Fox News Digital on Tuesday. "She signed court documents acknowledging that there was no abuse and recently reaffirmed the same during her FBI interview. Belated claims by Danielle Dietrich, an anti-Trump, far-left Democrat who is divorced from Mr. Hegseth’s brother and never got along with the Hegseth family, do nothing to change that." 

Hegseth's final leg of the confirmation process will unfold after lawmakers vote on Ratcliffe for CIA director — a process that could pour over into the weekend. 

Fox News' Chad Pergram contributed to this report.