Earlier this week, the U.S. Senate confirmed Kenneth A. Polite to become Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division, WDSU reports. He was officially sworn in on Wednesday, making him the second African American to serve in this position.

Senators voted 56-44 to make Polite the chief of the criminal division, giving him authority to oversee prosecutions ranging from corporate and cybercrime to drug trafficking.

“I’m confident that Kenneth Polite will exercise sound judgment as an assistant attorney general," John Kennedy, a Republican senator from Louisiana said. "I believe he’ll pursue justice and shun political pressure, and that’s why I was happy to support his nomination.”

Polite previously served as the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana from September 2013 to March 2017 when he was nominated by former President Barack Obama.

Recently, Polite was working in the private sector as a partner at the Morgan Lewis law firm in Philadelphia.

Polite succeeds acting Assistant Attorney General Nicholas McQuaid.