COLUMBIA, S.C. — President-elect Donald Trump nominated Gov. Nikki Haley to be the United Nations ambassador for the United States on Nov. 23, according to Melissa Quinn of Newsweek.

Haley has accepted. Now it’s left for the Senate to confirm her as ambassador after the presidential inauguration Jan. 20, as reported by Andy Shain of the Charleston Post and Courier.

Accepting the UN position will leave the South Carolina governor position vacant, according to Shain. If Haley’s position is confirmed, Lt. Gov. Henry McMaster will take over as governor and finish the last two years of Haley’s term, according to WRDW.   

It’s not guaranteed another individual will fill the position of lieutenant governor after McMaster becomes governor, according to Shain.

The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations is a permanent representative of the United States and member of the president’s cabinet, according to WRDW and Domonoske. This makes Haley the country’s official spokesperson.

The ambassador works “to advance U.S. interests, promote and defend universal values and address pressing global challenges to peace, security, and prosperity,” according to the United States Mission to the United Nations.

Haley would have to move with her family to New York where the UN headquarters is located. She and her family would be housed in the same penthouse apartment as Samantha Powers, current U.S. ambassador.  

Haley is the second woman proposed for Trump’s cabinet. Four women overall have been picked for the presidential cabinet, according to Amy Moreno of Truthfeed. Three so far are women of color, according to Deena Zaru of CNN.

Elaine Chao, former U.S. secretary of labor for the Bush administration, was picked as a choice for secretary of transportation. Chao is the first Asian-American woman to serve in a cabinet position, according to Phil Mattingly and David Wright of CNN.  

Seema Verma, president CEO and founder of Strategic Health Policy Solutions (SVC Inc.),  a national health policy consulting firm, was picked to be administrator of the Center for Medicare Medicaid Services. Verma helped design Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion model. She has been involved in Indiana’s health reform since the passage of the Affordable Care Act of 2010.

Betsy DeVos, GOP party funder and activist from Michigan, was picked to be secretary of the U.S. Department of Education, according to Common Dreams.

DeVos, a former chairwoman of the Michigan Republican Party, supports the school choice movement, which  encompasses redirecting public funds from public schools and establishing a voucher program for students to attend private school, according to Dana Goldstein of The Slate and  Kate Zernike of The New York Times.

The nominations of Haley, Chao, Verma and DeVos could make the presidential cabinet more diverse. According to The Washington Post, the nominations were previously gaining criticism for their lack of diversity.

Haley will continue as governor until the Senate confirmation process concludes next January.

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