This was announced by President-elect Donald Trump he will nominate Herschel Walker, the former football player, whose Senate election 2022 was plagued by controversy over serving as U.S. ambassador to the Bahamas.

“Herschel has served for decades as an ambassador to our nation’s youth, our men and women in the military, and athletes at home and abroad,” Trump said on social media Tuesday night.

Walker would need to be confirmed by the Senate to take on the role. The Senate has not confirmed a U.S. ambassador to the Bahamas in more than a decade. According to the Associated Press, former President Barack Obama nominated Cassandra Butts for the role in 2014, but the Senate never put her nomination to a vote. She died in 2016.

Trump nominated Doug Manchester for the role of ambassador during his first term in 2017, but his nomination fell by the wayside for more than two years. CBS News also uncovered evidence of one in 2019 Possible pay-to-play system for the role. He eventually withdrew and Trump nominated William Douglass in 2020. Douglass’ nomination was withdrawn by President Biden upon his inauguration, and Mr. Biden in turn nominated Calvin Smyre, who was not confirmed by the Senate.

Since there is no official ambassador to the Bahamas, Kimberly Furnish currently serves as chargé d’affaires.

Walker gained national fame as the Georgia Bulldogs’ star running back and won the Heisman Trophy in 1982. He spent his first professional years in the United States Football League before it folded and then moved to the NFL.

Walker returned to the national spotlight when, at Trump’s urging, he challenged Georgia Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock for his seat in 2022. The race was marked by several controversies, including two women claiming that Walker – who ran as an anti-abortion candidate – did this paid to have abortions performed.

Walker denied both allegations.

In one case, Walker authorized to issue a check for a woman who said he paid for her to have an abortion in 2009, but he said he didn’t know what the money was for.

Another woman claimed Walker paid her to have an abortion while the two were in a six-year relationship while he was married to another woman and playing in the NFL. During a press conference in 2022, she said she couldn’t perform the procedure when she had it done herself, so the next day Walker took her to a Dallas-area clinic and waited for her while she had the abortion .

“That was a lie a week ago and it’s a lie today,” Walker said at the time, following an interview the woman gave a week after the first press conference.

Warnock would win the election in a year drain after none of the candidates received more than 50% of the vote on election day.

Aaron Navarro and Nikole Killion contributed to this report.