Former Trump EPA administrator and coal lobbyist Andrew Wheeler will not be Virginia’s next secretary of natural resources. In a narrow, party-line vote Virginia state senators blocked Wheeler’s nomination after a sustained campaign against him by many environmentalists.

“To me, the fundamental question before us is will Andrew Wheeler protect our atmosphere, lands, and waters from pollution, impairment, and destruction?” said Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria), on the Senate floor ahead of the vote.

Wheeler served as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency under President Donald Trump from 2019 to 2021, where he oversaw the weakening vehicle emissions standards and clean power regulations and rolled back clean water protections. He also downplayed the impact of climate change, saying in 2019 that any danger from global warming was “50 to 75 years out,” and less urgent than other priorities. Prior to that, he worked as a lobbyist for the coal industry, representing some of the largest coal companies in the U.S. Wheeler was tapped by Governor Glenn Youngkin last month, who cited the commonwealth’s need for a “diverse energy portfolio in place to fuel our economic growth.”

“I personally found him to be affable and assume he’s pleasant enough to work with,” Ebbin said of Wheeler, who portrayed himself in a moderate light during a confirmation hearing while showing off his knowledge of environmental issues in Virginia.

“If we’re to confirm Mr. Wheeler though, I’m confident he’ll use the intelligence and subject matter expertise to do exactly what he did at the federal level: systematically deconstruct regulations that protect our environment.”

Ebbin referred to a letter written by more than 150 former EPA staffers opposing Wheeler’s nomination in Virginia. “Let’s listen to the people who’ve seen his work up close,” Ebbin said.

Sen. Richard Stuart (R-Westmoreland) defended Wheeler, saying he’d “done a tremendous amount for clean air and water in Virginia,” and that environmental groups “don’t like him because of who he worked for.”

The Senate’s rejection of Youngkin’s pick was a rare move in a legislative body that usually gives governors leeway to select their cabinets. The last, and only, time a cabinet choice was rejected by the General Assembly was in 2006 when then-Gov. Tim Kaine’s choice for secretary of the commonwealth was voted down by Republicans. At the time, the angry Democratic governor said Republicans had “taken a huge leap past any degree of partisanship that’s ever been shown in this commonwealth.”

Democrats in the Senate stuck together in opposing Wheeler — they have a one-seat majority and ties can be broken by Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears. In late January, it looked as though Wheeler might have won over one Democrat, Sen. Joseph Morrissey. “I am very much open to approving his nomination,” Morrissey (D-Richmond) told the Washington Post after a confirmation hearing in which the senator lobbed chummy questions at the nominee.

On Wheeler’s confirmation, however, Democrats said that it was not about partisanship but about Wheeler’s track record.

“I took his nomination seriously,” said Senator Chap Petersen (D-Fairfax), adding that the governor is entitled to choose his cabinet. Petersen added, however: “This secretariat needs to be somebody who’s focused on preserving natural resources, not just finding ways to get around those rules.”

A spokesperson for Youngkin, Macaulay Porter, called Wheeler “extraordinarily qualified” in a statement.

“The governor is disappointed in today’s vote because he was looking forward to Mr. Wheeler accomplishing great things on behalf of Virginians,” Porter said.

Porter said Wheeler would continue to serve in the role in an interim basis.

“In the meantime, we hope the Senate will reconsider,” Porter wrote.

Wheeler’s name was struck from a resolution confirming numerous gubernatorial appointments. Now, the resolution — without Wheeler’s appointment — heads to a third and final reading.