Senate confirms top civil rights official at Justice Department

Senate confirms civil rights official at Justice

WASHINGTON — The Senate voted 72-22 Tuesday to confirm Thomas Perez as the Justice Department’s top civil rights official.

Perez, who will lead the civil rights division, is the first senior Justice Department official to be confirmed since April.

Four assistant attorneys general nominations remain on the Senate’s calendar: Dawn Johnsen to head the office of the legal counsel, Mary Smith for the tax division, Christopher Schroeder to lead the office of legal policy and Ignacia Moreno for the environment and natural resources division.