The Senate Foreign Relations Committee has approved the nomination of former Sen. Scott Brown to be U.S. ambassador to New Zealand.
The move by voice vote on Thursday all but assures that the full Senate will confirm Brown's selection for the post after the Memorial Day recess.
Brown is a Republican who represented Massachusetts in the Senate from 2010 to 2013. He won a special election to fill the seat held by the late Democratic Sen. Ted Kennedy, a Democrat.
Brown lost that seat to Democrat Elizabeth Warren, and in 2014, he lost a Senate race in New Hampshire to Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen.
Brown faced no opposition during his confirmation hearing last week.
