Before the vote, Senate  Republicans had changed the rules in order to approve Trump's nominees for health and treasury, despite the absence of Democrats who were opposed to the nominations.

Tillerson, a novice to political office, had faced heavy scrutiny over his ties to Russia.

The former oil boss had multibillion-dollar deals with Russia's state oil company, Rosneft, and was awarded the Order of Friendship by the Kremlin in 2013.

As the US secretary of state, Tillerson will handle relations with countries including China and Russia and negotiate matters such as climate change and human rights, on behalf of President Trump.