Washington DC, Feb. 20 -- The US Senate has voted to advance Indian-origin Kash Patel's nomination as the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

A procedural vote has confirmed Patel and it will be followed by the final vote shortly.

This came despite opposition from the Democrats, who warned that Patel, a staunch Republican, could use the agency to target the president's perceived political enemies, as reported by CBS News.

FBI directors serve 10-year terms but can be removed by the president. Chris Wray, appointed in 2017, resigned at the end of former US President Joe Biden's term after President Donald Trump pledged to fire him, CBS News reported.

On Tuesday, Patel cleared a key procedural vote in the Senate with s...