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Former Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue confirmed as agriculture secretary

WASHINGTON — Former Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue has been confirmed as U.S. agriculture secretary, the Associated Press reported.

The U.S. Senate confirmed Perdue late Monday afternoon.

Perdue is the second Georgian named to President Donald Trump's cabinet after U.S. Rep. Tom Price of Roswell was tapped as Health and Human Services Secretary.

Perdue is now the head of the $140 billion agency, which dictates the nation's farm policy and also oversees the food stamp program. He is the first agriculture secretary from a Southern state since Mike Espy of Mississippi headed the department in the early 1990s.

Perdue's cousin, U.S. Sen. David Perdue, sent a statement:

"As Agriculture Secretary, Governor Perdue will be a strong voice for our nation's farmers, ranchers and agribusinesses, and an effective leader for this important department. He is the first Secretary of Agriculture from Georgia, and I know he will make us proud."

"A native of Perry, Georgia, Perdue helped craft the state's agriculture policy in the 1990s as a Democratic state senator from Houston County before switching to the GOP in 1998."

Sen. Johnny Isakson also sent a statement congratulating the former governor:

"Sonny's experience and leadership in public service, business and agriculture will benefit our nation as he takes the reins as secretary of agriculture," Isakson said. "Agriculture remains Georgia's number one industry, and our state is fortunate to have him in this important leadership position. I was proud to cast my vote today in support of Sonny Perdue."

Sonny Perdue's surprise victory over Gov. Roy Barnes in 2002 – making him Georgia’s first GOP governor since Reconstruction – triggered a Republican wave in Georgia that flipped the state Senate and then the state House. Georgia Republicans now control every statewide office in Georgia.

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As governor, he carved out a reliably conservative record that included legislation aimed at cracking down on illegal immigration and creating new photo ID requirements for Georgia voters.

He also oversaw Georgia’s decades-long water dispute with Alabama and Florida and the state’s response to an epic drought that prompted him to call for stiff water restrictions. At the height of the drought in 2007, he joined other state officials on the statehouse steps to lead a solemn prayer for rain that drew national headlines.

He attracted scrutiny for using taxpayer money to build the Go Fish Education Center near his home in Bonaire, Georgia. The facility has attracted about one-fifth of the visitors who were expected to use the facility and the state still owes at least $12 million for the project, which The New York Times dubbed a “symbol of waste” when it opened.

Since leaving office in 2011, Perdue has run a string of trucking, agriculture and logistics firms from his base in middle Georgia, a role that helped him appeal to Trump.

He was not always an enthusiastic Trump supporter. He initially endorsed former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and then former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, but he stumped for Trump across Georgia in the final months of his campaign and served on the president-elect’s agriculture advisory board.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution contributed to this article.

Cox Media Group

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