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Senate confirms Perez as Labor secretary

After a last-minute deal earlier this week to avert a showdown over filibuster rules, the Senate has confirmed Tom Perez as the next Secretary of Labor.

The vote was 54-46.

Praising the vote, President Barack Obama said in a statement "I want to thank the Senate once again for agreeing to move forward on Tom and the other nominees who have waited far too long for the yes-or-no votes they deserve."

Republicans had accused Perez of inappropriate conduct regarding a whistleblower case against the city of St. Paul, Minn., while serving with the Justice Department. Democrats said that Republicans were unfairly blocking a confirmation vote for Perez and a number of other nominees, leading Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to threaten to use the  “nuclear option” -- allowing a simple majority vote to change Senate rules for the confirmation of executive branch nominees.

But both sides stood down after reaching a compromise brokered between the two warring caucuses.

The Senate moved Perez’s nomination forward Wednesday with a 60-40 vote, garnering just enough support to move to final confirmation.

Perez will now serve as the only Latino member of Obama’s cabinet.