Former Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue is one step closer to becoming agriculture secretary.

The Senate Agriculture Committee voted on Thursday to send Perdue to the full Senate with a favorable recommendation.

The panel’s decision came a week after Perdue’s confirmation hearing.

The only vote against Perdue came from Sen. Kristen Gillibrand (D-NY). Gillibrand told Committee Chairman Senator Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) that she was concerned about how Perdue would handle the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

Roberts was pleased with the vote.

“I am pleased our committee has made swift strides to move Governor Perdue’s nomination closer to the finish line,” Roberts said in a press release. “Our farmers and ranchers have been waiting too long for this important position to be filled. We need to get Governor Perdue down to USDA to get to work. Rural America is ready.”

Governor Perdue has the bipartisan support of six past agriculture secretaries. The governor also has the support of more than 650 agricultural groups from across the nation.

The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) praised the committee vote.

The “vote by the Senate Agriculture Committee to move Sonny Perdue’s nomination to the full Senate for confirmation recognizes what we’ve said all along: Gov. Perdue is supremely qualified to run the USDA,” AFBF President Zippy Duvall said.

Duvall acknowledged Perdue as a seasoned expert in agriculture and expressed full support.

“He knows agriculture inside-out, from veterinary medicine to row crops to the business of handling and exporting the food Americans grow for the world,” Duvall said. “He understands the great good—and serious harm—government can do to farmers and ranchers. We could not be happier or prouder to support Sonny Perdue for confirmation by the full Senate.”

Senate Agriculture Committee ranking member Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) supported Perdue’s nomination saying, “Although we have some differences on policy, we share a commitment to support American agriculture and strengthen our small towns and rural communities. I look forward to working together with Governor Perdue as we write the 2018 Farm Bill. Farmers and families in Michigan and all across rural America need a champion at USDA.”

It is unclear when the Senate vote will happen due to the upper chamber’s heavy workload, according to POLITICO.

After next Friday, the Senate goes on its two-week spring recess.