Kevin Warsh was confirmed Wednesday as chair of the Federal Reserve for a four-year term, as financial markets watch US monetary policy amid persistent inflation pressures.

The US Senate voted 54-45 to confirm Warsh, 56, as chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Most senators voted along party lines, with only Pennsylvania Democrat John Fetterman backing the nomination.

Warsh, nominated by President Donald Trump in January, will succeed Jerome Powell, whose term as Federal Reserve chair expires on Friday. Powell has led the central bank since 2018 and said he would remain on the Fed's Board of Governors after stepping down as chair.

Warsh's confirmation concludes a lengthy process to select Powell's successor that began in the summer of 2025. Other candidates under consideration included current Federal Reserve governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman. Warsh will serve as the 17th chair of the Federal Reserve.

He was a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors from 2006 to 2011. After leaving the Fed, he has taught at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and the Hoover Institution.

Warsh has called for "regime change" at the Federal Reserve, including reforms to how the institution measures and communicates economic data. He has also expressed support for lowering interest rates. He also said he would rely on his own judgment in setting monetary policy and would not follow instructions from the White House.

Warsh's appointment comes at a time when the Trump administration has repeatedly called for lower interest rates while promoting tax cuts and deregulation measures aimed at boosting economic growth.

Over the past year, the Trump administration has sought greater influence over the Federal Reserve. Trump attempted to remove Biden-appointed Governor Lisa Cook over fraud allegations and directed the Justice Department to investigate Powell over a building renovation, a move a federal judge ruled was designed to pressure Powell into cutting rates or stepping down.

The investigation was dropped after Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina threatened to block Warsh's confirmation vote unless the probe was terminated.

As of April, the Federal Reserve has kept benchmark interest rates at a 3.5 percent to 3.75 percent range, as policymakers seek to keep borrowing costs elevated to combat persistent inflation and return it toward the central bank's 2 percent target.

Recent economic data has complicated expectations for monetary easing.

According to a report released on Tuesday by the Labor Department, consumer prices in April were up 3.8 percent from a year ago, marking its highest level since May 2023. Price pressures have increased following disruptions to tanker traffic in the Strait of Hormuz amid conflict, pushing up crude oil and gasoline prices.