Lee Zeldin
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Lee Zeldin, born in 1980, is an American attorney, politician, and Army Reserve officer. A Republican, he served in the New York State Senate (2011–2014) and then represented New York’s 1st congressional district in the U.S. House (2015–2023). A strong ally of Donald Trump, Zeldin defended him during the first impeachment and ran unsuccessfully for New York governor in 2022. In November 2024, Trump nominated Zeldin to lead the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) during his second administration. Zeldin was confirmed and took office as the 17th EPA Administrator on January 29, 2025. Since then, he has focused on reshaping the agency’s mission and advancing major environmental deregulation.
Zeldin wants to repeal environmental protections.
Opposes the Inflation Reduction Act
The Sierra Club strongly condemned Donald Trump’s nomination of former Congressman Lee Zeldin to lead the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), calling him unqualified and a threat to American workers and environmental protections. Zeldin, who has a lifetime League of Conservation Voters (LCV) score of just 14%, has consistently opposed environmental legislation, including the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which has created over 300,000 clean energy jobs and boosted American manufacturing.
Favors Corporate Polluters
Despite these gains, Zeldin has pledged to restore "American energy dominance" and revitalize the auto industry—claims environmental advocates argue ignore the tangible benefits of current clean energy policies. The Sierra Club warned that under Zeldin, the EPA’s mission to protect air, water, and public health would be undermined in favor of corporate polluters.
Profits over Environmental Protections
Executive Director Ben Jealous said Zeldin's nomination signals Trump’s intent to reverse hard-won progress on climate and clean energy, putting public health and the environment at risk. As climate-related disasters intensify, the Sierra Club vowed to resist any efforts by Trump and Zeldin to roll back protections and hand control over to wealthy polluters.
Zeldin is accused of election fraud by the New York State Board of Elections.
Zeldin’s campaign attempted to appear on the Independence Party ballot line
In 2022, Republican New York gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin became embroiled in an election fraud scandal involving his campaign’s attempt to appear on the Independence Party ballot line. The New York State Board of Elections rejected the effort after discovering nearly 13,000 invalid petition signatures, including more than 11,000 photocopied duplicates. This triggered a criminal investigation by the Albany County District Attorney’s office, with increasing evidence pointing to direct involvement by Zeldin’s senior staff and operatives. The signatures were reportedly assembled at New York GOP headquarters under the supervision of convicted fraudster and party operative John Haggerty.
January 6 Rioters collected and signed petitions
Adding to the controversy, far-right extremist groups such as the Long Island Loud Majority and the Setauket Patriots—both connected to the January 6 Capitol riot—were involved in collecting and signing the petitions. Reporting revealed that nearly half of the fraudulent petitions came from Zeldin’s home base in Suffolk County and were witnessed by his campaign staff. The scandal is particularly damaging given Zeldin’s public stance on “election integrity” and his past vote to overturn the 2020 presidential election based on false claims of voter fraud.
Zeldin is not credible or fit for office
Critics have called the episode blatant hypocrisy and potentially criminal. Legal experts described the situation as simple and deliberate fraud, while political leaders from both parties have demanded accountability. Zeldin’s campaign has offered contradictory explanations and avoided direct answers, with Zeldin himself abruptly ending press conferences when questioned. The ongoing investigation seeks to determine who was responsible for the photocopied signatures and whether top GOP officials were complicit. Given Zeldin’s past support for baseless conspiracy theories and his prior history of misinformation, this scandal has raised serious doubts about his credibility and fitness for office.
Zeldin illegally withheld funds from environmental causes.
Zeldin cancelled nearly $23 billion in grants towards environmental causes
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin faced sharp bipartisan criticism in a Senate hearing over his decision to freeze funding and cancel nearly $23 billion in congressionally approved grants aimed at combating pollution and promoting clean energy, particularly in minority and low-income communities. These grants, originally awarded under the 2022 climate law during the Biden administration, included $3 billion for environmental justice initiatives and $20 billion for a green bank to finance climate-friendly projects nationwide.
Bipartisan agreement
Senators from both parties, including Democrat Jeff Merkley and Republican Lisa Murkowski, accused Zeldin of illegally impounding funds—actions they argued violated decades of precedent and Supreme Court rulings affirming Congress’s control over federal spending. Merkley bluntly suggested Zeldin resign if he couldn’t uphold his oath to follow the law, while Murkowski criticized the indiscriminate nature of the budget cuts, which impacted rural Alaska projects.
Zeldin refused to acknowledge the cuts as unlawful
Zeldin defended the moves by citing policy priorities under President Trump, arguing that they differed from those under Biden, but refused to acknowledge the cuts as unlawful. Democratic Senators, including Patty Murray and Jon Ossoff, accused Zeldin and the Trump administration of trying to "burn down" the EPA and abandoning communities in need—like Thomasville, Georgia, where a $19.8 million grant was canceled for a wastewater project and health clinic.
Justice and Diversity
Zeldin suggested some grants could be restored if language about environmental justice and diversity was removed, in line with a Trump executive order. He also admitted the EPA workforce could shrink to levels last seen during the Reagan era, with thousands of layoffs and retirements underway as part of a broader federal downsizing effort led by Trump and Elon Musk.