The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee has voted in favor of Mike Pompeo for Secretary of State.
Pompeo now needs full Senate approval to be confirmed as the top U.S. diplomat.
Leading up to the vote, Republican Senator Rand Paul had expressed his opposition to the nomination but he changed his stance just before the vote.
With Senator Paul's reversal, the panel voted eleven to nine in favor of Pompeo.
Pompeo, who is still serving as CIA director, met with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Pyongyang last week to discuss matters before the U.S.-North Korea summit.
