Donald Trump to announce Governor of South Dakota Kristi Noem as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security in his second administration, according to reports.

As the president-elect continues to shape his future cabinet, two sources said CNN Monday evening that the 52-year-old man only one vice-presidential candidate was tapped to lead the agency as part of Trump’s crackdown on immigration.

As part of the role, Noem will oversee a $60 billion budget and thousands of employees from federal agencies ranging from U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement to the U.S. Secret Service.

The report follows Trump’s rehiring Tom Homanthe former acting director of ICE as the president-elect’s “border czar.” Trump also announced the appointment of immigration leader Stephen Miller as White House deputy chief of staff for policy.

Noem, a staunch Trump supporter and proponent of strict immigration policies, had once been a front-runner to become the Republican presidential nominee’s running mate.

But the South Dakota lawmaker appeared to drop the ordinance in April after it allowed to draw killed her “untrained” and “dangerous” young dog, Cricket, in her self-titled memoir It doesn’t come back.

A similar fate was set for an unnamed “troubled” goat, which Noah wrote crawled into the same gravel pit and killed the farm animal.

In May, Trump defended Noem as “loyal” and “great,” before adding that he was “very curious” about what happened to Cricket.

Noem served in the lower house of the House from 2007 to 2019, first as the representative for South Dakota’s 6th district, before representing the general congressional district in 2011.

Trump endorsed Noem in the 2018 gubernatorial election, which made her the Mount Rushmore State’s first female governor in January 2019.

In her landslide re-election victory in 2022, the governor flipped 17 counties and set the record for most votes received as a candidate in the state.

The longtime Republican drew national attention during the Covid-19 pandemic for refusing to implement statewide mask mandates.

Noem previously made headlines when she was “kicked out” of land belonging to South Dakota’s largest tribe, the Oglala Sioux Tribe, whose leader claimed the governor was politicizing the border to influence Trump’s presidential campaign and boost his chances of becoming his running mate.

This came after Noem deployed the National Guard from South Dakota to Texas to provide assistance on the southern border in January, declaring that the US was “in a period of invasion”.

Noem’s purported appointment comes as Trump continues fill the first ranks in his new hardline immigration administration after clinching re-election in the 2024 presidential race last week.

The Republican nominee crossed the 270-vote threshold in the Electoral College early Wednesday after winning several swing states. Trump went on to win all seven battleground states.

So far, Trump has also tapped former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin to lead the Environmental Protection Agency on Monday in what is expected to be a major overhaul.

Susie Wiles, who served as Trump’s campaign co-chair and earned the nickname “Ice Dog,” has been named White House chief of staff.

On Sunday night, the president-elect confirmed New York Rep. Elise Stefanik as the new US ambassador to the United Nations, labeling her a “strong, tough and smart America First fighter.”

Marco Rubio has also been tapped for secretary of state, sources told CBS, with a number of GOP members of Congress already congratulating the Florida senator.

Meanwhile, Florida Rep. Michael Waltz, who was re-elected to the lower House last week, is expected to serve as national security adviser.

The Independent has reached out to both Trump and Noem’s representatives for more information.