President-elect Donald Trump on Monday announced he has picked former Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) to helm the Environmental Protection Agency, the first step in what Trump’s supporters have said could be a thorough shakeup of the regulatory body.

Strikingly, Trump made his EPA nominee one of the very first personnel decisions of his incoming administration — an unusually prominent placement that appeared to reflect the prime role that energy deregulation played in his campaign messaging.

The selection of Zeldin, a vocal Trump ally in Congress during his first term, was a surprise after Andrew Wheeler, who served as the second EPA chief during Trump’s first term, was widely thought to be the frontrunner for the post.

At EPA, Zeldin will carry out Trump’s energy and environmental agenda, which includes pulling back Biden-era rules on climate and air pollution and potentially rescinding millions of dollars in funding for clean energy under […]