The Senate voted 54-43 to confirm the nomination of Preston Griffith, a former special assistant to the president for international energy and environment policy, as under secretary at the Department of Energy. The vote occurred on Wednesday with three senators casting no votes.
Who Is Preston Griffith?
Prior to President Donald Trump’s nomination, Griffith spent over four years at FTI Consulting, where he was the managing director for the past two years and the senior director before that. The executive also served as managing director and senior adviser to the CEO for energy at the International Development Finance Corporation. He advised on investments and developments in the energy market while coordinating with various government agencies to garner support for the DFC’s initiatives.
Griffith concurrently served in the White House as special assistant to the president and senior director for energy and environment at the National Security Council and National Economic Council. Before that, he was with the Energy Department as acting assistant secretary and principal deputy assistant secretary, providing advice to the secretary, deputy secretary and other senior DOE officials on the development and implementation of foreign energy policies and other issues.
Earlier in his career, Griffith was heavily involved with the Republican Party, helping the campaigns of several politicians.
