The Senate approved Steel's nomination by a vote of 55-39, completing the confirmation process a little more than two months after President Donald Trump nominated her on April 13.
Steel will formally take up the position after receiving her commission from Trump and completing diplomatic procedures with the South Korean government including obtaining agrément, the host country's formal approval of an ambassador.
Wednesday's confirmation ends a vacancy that has lasted since former ambassador Philip Goldberg left the post in January 2025. Since then, the U.S. Embassy in Seoul has been led by a chargé d'affaires.
Steel, a Republican and Korean American, served two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives after previously serving as a member of the Orange County Board of Supervisors in California. She was first elected to Congress in 2020 and won reelection in 2022 before losing her seat in the 2024 election.
Born in Seoul in 1955, Steel, whose Korean name is Park Eun-joo, spent part of her childhood and adolescence in Japan before immigrating to the U.S. in 1975.
During her Senate confirmation hearing, Steel recounted her family's journey to the U.S. Her parents, who were born in what is now North Korea, fled south during the Korean War before eventually settling abroad.
She also used a Korean-language proverb, saying, "After hardship comes happiness," to describe her life story.
Steel will become the second Korean American to serve as U.S. ambassador to South Korea, following Sung Kim, who held the position from 2011 to 2014. She will also be the first Korean-American woman to serve as the top U.S. diplomat in Seoul.
Her appointment comes as Washington and Seoul continue to coordinate closely on security, economic and regional issues amid evolving challenges in Northeast Asia.
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