CNN
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President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday announced former Sen. Kelly Loeffler as his pick to lead the Small Business Administration.

“Kelly will bring her experience in business and Washington to cut red tape and empower our small businesses to grow, innovate and thrive. “She will focus on ensuring the SBA is accountable to taxpayers by cracking down on waste, fraud and regulatory overreach,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, also noting that she will co-chair his inauguration.

There had been several discussions between Loeffler and the transition team about the role of agriculture secretary, and CNN reported last month that Trump was open to offering her the position. But Trump held off announcing his choice for the agriculture sector as he announced a slew of other candidates late last month, ultimately offering the role to Brooke Rollins.

Loeffler, who briefly represented Georgia in the Senate, had been fundraising for Trump during the 2024 campaign and raised several million dollars for his campaign over the summer when she hosted a debate-watching party with Michael Whatley, chairman of the Republican National Committee. Several of Trump’s other Cabinet members — including Sen. Marco Rubio and Rep. Elise Stefanik — were at that party.

Loeffler was one of the richest members of Congress during her short time in Congress. Her husband, Jeffrey Sprecher, is CEO of the Intercontinental Exchange, which owns the New York Stock Exchange. When she was running for election in 2020, she announced that she and her husband would divest from individual stocks, despite sharp criticism of the trades she and other lawmakers made ahead of the coronavirus-induced market downturn.

Loeffler was appointed to the Senate by Georgia Governor Brian Kemp at Trump’s request and lost her seat to the current Democratic senator in a 2021 runoff election. Raphael Warnock.

Loeffler has been a staunch Trump ally in Congress and said before the violence on January 6, 2021, that she planned to vote against certifying her state’s election results in support of Trump’s broader effort to overturn Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory.

After the attack on the U.S. Capitol, Loeffler withdrew her objection, saying on the Senate floor: “When I arrived in Washington this morning, I had every intention of objecting to the certification of the electoral votes.” However, today’s events have forced me to to reconsider, and I cannot in good conscience now object to the certification of these voters.”

In the same speech, Loeffler condemned the violence at the Capitol, calling it “abhorrent.”

Loeffler was among the witnesses who appeared before the grand jury in Trump’s 2020 election subversion criminal case in Georgia.

Before joining the Senate, Loeffler worked as an executive at a financial services company in Atlanta. She was also co-owner of the WNBA’s Atlanta Dream.

Loeffler would need to be confirmed by the Senate to lead the Small Business Administration. Linda McMahon, a major Republican donor and Trump’s pick to be the next education secretary, served as the agency’s administrator during Trump’s first term. She resigned in 2019 to become chairwoman of America First Action, a pro-Trump super PAC.

This story has been updated with additional details.