Jay Clayton was sworn in Monday as the U.S. director of national ​intelligence after a contentious Senate confirmation hearing in which he refused to ‌directly acknowledge that President Donald Trump lost the 2020 presidential election. He takes on a role that was vacated in June when Tulsi Gabbard stepped ​down after a tenure marked by clashes with congressional Democrats, ​who accused her of advancing Trump's political agenda and ⁠promoting debunked election claims. "The safety and security of the American people ​will be our North Star, and we will work to make ​sure the American people have complete confidence in the IC through proper oversight, transparency, and accountability," Clayton said in a statement released by the Office of ​the Director of National Intelligence. With just over three months left ​before ⁠midterm elections that will decide which party controls Congress, Trump has escalated efforts to make "election security" a central issue, despite established findings that ⁠voter fraud ​is rare. Clayton, who has been ​the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, will oversee 18 U.S. ​intelligence agencies.