Senate Confirms Trump Loyalist Yvette Herrell to USDA Role

Alamogordo, NM — December 19, 2025 — In a late-night party-line vote, the U.S. Senate confirmed former Republican Rep. Yvette Herrell to a key liaison position at the Department of Agriculture, placing a staunch Trump ally in a role that could influence policies affecting farmers, rural communities, and food systems nationwide.

Herrell, who represented New Mexico’s 2nd Congressional District from 2021 to 2023, was confirmed as Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for Congressional Affairs on a 53-43 vote. The position positions her to shape USDA’s interactions with Congress and advocate for administration priorities—often aligned with corporate interests and deregulation—amid broader Trump-era efforts to roll back climate-smart programs, cut renewable energy support for rural areas, and prioritize agribusiness over small farmers and farmworkers.

Herrell’s family has longstanding ties to Alamogordo and Otero County through real estate and business ventures, including her work as a broker and founder of Herrell Insurance and Real Estate. While her supporters highlight this as deep local roots, critics have raised questions about potential conflicts of interest and the use of influence in the region’s economy.

As an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation and the first Republican Native woman in Congress, Herrell has emphasized rural and agricultural issues, but her record includes opposition to progressive reforms like expanded protections for downwinders from nuclear testing fallout and alignment with policies that critics say favor big ag over family farms and environmental safeguards.

No public response has come from Democratic leaders or current Rep. Gabe Vasquez (D-NM), who defeated Herrell in 2022 and 2024. Progressive advocates have expressed alarm over Trump USDA appointments generally, warning of a shift toward corporate-friendly policies that could undermine climate resilience, worker protections, and equitable support for rural economies like those in southern New Mexico.

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