President Donald Trump has appointed former North Carolina Republican representative and pastor Mark Walker to serve as the new ambassador-at-large for the Office of International Religious Freedom in the US Department of State.
The position, which was created by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1988, works to ensure international religious freedoms and make recommendations for the US response when religious rights are violated.
Trump made the announcement last week on his Truth Social page.
According to the State Department’s website, the office’s mission is to promote universal respect for freedom of religion or belief for all as a core objective of US foreign policy. They monitor religiously motivated abuses, harassment, and discrimination worldwide and recommend, develop, and implement policies and programs to address these concerns.
Walker thanked Trump on his X page.
“As a former minister, along with serving in Congressional leadership, I’m open-eyed to the bad actors and regions committing these atrocities against people of faith, he said. “I know President Trump is a defender of faith evidenced by his bold statement on religious liberty at the United Nations, “Today, with one clear voice, the United States of America calls upon the nations of the world to end religious persecution.” I await the Senate confirmation process and look forward to working with VP Vance, Susie Wiles, Secretary Rubio, Director Ratcliffe, and the incredible team.”
Walker was a former US representative in NC-06 from 2015-2021. He was elected chairman of the Republican Study Committee for 2017-2019 and vice chair of the House Republican Conference from 2019-2021.
He ran again for the office when he faced off against Addison McDowell in the primary election in March 2024. The race also almost went into a runoff until Walker conceded after accepting a position with the Trump re-election campaign as director of outreach for faith and minority communities.
Before starting his political career, he served in pastoral roles in churches in Florida and North Carolina, including serving on the staff at Calvary Baptist Church in Winston-Salem and as worship pastor at Lawndale Baptist Church in Greensboro.
Walker’s nomination now heads through the Senate confirmation process.
The Trump administration also announced last week that Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, of Boone, has been appointed as acting director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, (ATF), replacing FBI Director Kash Patel.
He was sworn in as Army Secretary in February.
Driscoll served in the US Army from 2009 to 2011, served in Iraq, and was a first lieutenant before leaving the Army and working in investment banking. Most recently, he had served as senior advisor to Vice President-Elect JD Vance.