Pete Hegseth, President-elect Trump’s pick to head the Pentagon, is facing a tight Senate confirmation as questions continue to swirl around his suitability for the job.

The Army veteran and former Fox News host will need to alleviate concerns around allegations of sexual assault, graphic details of which emerged in a police report released Wednesday. His untested status in running a major agency is also under scrutiny.

Though no GOP senator has yet to openly oppose him, several have given lackluster responses to Trump’s pick — with only four Republicans needed to side with Democrats in opposing Hegseth’s nomination to tank his chances.

What’s more, this week’s failed nomination of former Rep. Matt Gaetz to be U.S. attorney general has shown that even with a GOP majority in both chamber’s next year, the incoming Trump administration may not get everything it wants without opposition when it comes to controversial Cabinet picks.

Here are the six Republican senators that could be key to his confirmation:

Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst

A Senate Armed Services Committee member, Ernst has appeared to take issue with the sexual assault allegations against Hegseth, which she says require “discussion.”

“Any time there are allegations, you want to make sure they are properly vetted, so we’ll have that discussion,” Ernst, a National Guard and Army Reserve veteran, told Politico.

Ernst — who has publicly shared that a boyfriend had sexually assaulted her while she was a student at Iowa State University, as well as the revelation that she was sexually harassed in the military — has been vocal in her........

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