Former Republican U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte has been tapped by the White House to lead the effort of shepherding U.S. Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch through Capitol Hill.
President Donald Trump named Gorsuch Tuesday night as his pick to fill the seat left vacant by Antonin Scalia, who died last year.
In her role, Ayotte, a former New Hampshire attorney general, will introduce Gorsuch to U.S. Senators, many of whom she worked with during her tenure in Washington, D.C. She will also escort Gorsuch to meetings and to his confirmation hearing.
In a statement to WMUR, Ayotte says she’s "honored to have the opportunity to assist the president in the confirmation process of the next conservative justice on the Supreme Court."
Ayotte was a vocal critic of Trump during last year’s campaign, eventually saying she wouldn’t vote for the Republican nominee following the release of the Access Hollywood tape. She narrowly lost in her bid for re-election to Democrat Maggie Hassan