Betsy DeVos
Betsy DeVos testifies before the Senate Health, Education and Labor Committee in a confirmation hearing to be the next Secretary of Education on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 17, 2017. Reuters

Betsy DeVos, President Donald Trump’s pick for education secretary, will face a confirmation vote at noon Tuesday despite Senate Democrats' all-night protest against her nomination for the position.

DeVos, a billionaire philanthropist who has made a number of donations to the Republican party over the past few years, has caused controversy recently among the Democrats for having limited experience with public education law, standards and problems. The daughter-in-law of Richard DeVos, the co-founder of health and home care company Amway, DeVos also has been criticized for lifting parts of her committee-submitted questionnaire from sources without attribution and for suggesting guns should be allowed in schools to protect children from grizzly bear attacks.

While no Democrat will vote in favor of DeVos’ confirmation Tuesday, Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, have said they will break from their party’s stand to vote against DeVos. If all senators vote as predicted, the vote will likely end up tied at 50-50.

DeVos’ confirmation, however, is expected to go through, as Vice President Mike Pence could make history by casting a tie-breaking vote in favor of the GOP. This would be the first instance of a vice president casting his vote to confirm a cabinet nominee. He would also be the first veep to end a tie in the Senate in nine years, following Dick Cheney's vote on a tax adjustment plan in 2008, the Hill reported.

However, Democrats were standing their ground with an overnight protest against the education secretary pick. Minority Leader Charles Schumer took to the Senate floor Monday to request the GOP to not put “party above country.”

Sen. Elizabeth Warren also joined the Democratic protest, saying: “The Republicans have made it clear no matter her experience, no matter her radical views ... they will ram this nomination down the throats of the American people sideways.”

Watch DeVos’ confirmation vote live here at the U.S. Senate website or below on YouTube:

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