New Delhi: US President Joe Biden’s aide Eric Garcetti was nominated as US Ambassador to India. The US Senate on Wednesday voted 52-42 advancing the former Los Angeles mayor’s nomination that caps off months of stasis for Garcetti.

The former mayor’s nomination was pending before the US Congress since July 2021 when he was nominated for the prestigious diplomatic posting by Biden. The position has remained vacant for more than two years. His nomination was not brought to the Senate floor for a vote during the last Congress as the ruling Democratic Party did not have enough support to get him through.

President Biden renominated Garcetti to the same position in January this year. The last US ambassador to India, Kenneth Juster, stepped down in January 2021 after the change of Government in America.