Senate Democrats Rush to Confirm Judges Before Trump's Inauguration

Photo : Reuters

In a race against time, Senate Democrats are pushing to confirm as many of President Joe Biden's judicial nominees as possible before Republicans take control of the Senate on January 3, 2025. On Tuesday, the Senate is set to hold its first confirmation vote since the Nov. 5 presidential election, with a focus on former prosecutor April Perry, whom Biden nominated for a U.S. district court judge position in Illinois.

Biden has made 31 judicial nominations, with 17 already reviewed by the Senate Judiciary Committee and awaiting a final vote by the full Senate. The remaining 14 nominees are waiting for committee review. Perry is among the 17 who are poised to get a vote soon. These nominations are critical, as the U.S. Constitution gives the Senate the power to confirm a president's choices for lifetime federal judiciary positions.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer expressed urgency, stating, "We are going to get as many done as we can." Under Biden, 213 judicial nominees have already been confirmed, including notable appointees such as Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. His judicial appointments have been diverse, with about two-thirds being women and a similar proportion being racial minorities.

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In contrast, former President Donald Trump made 234 judicial appointments during his first term, helping establish a 6-3 conservative majority on the U.S. Supreme Court. Biden’s administration has focused on appointing liberal judges, which has drawn praise from Democrats but also fierce opposition from Republicans.

With Republicans about to gain control of the Senate, there is concern that many of Biden's nominees could be blocked. Trump has publicly urged Republicans to halt any judicial confirmations, calling Biden’s judicial picks "activist" and harmful to the country. Elon Musk, a Trump ally, echoed these concerns, furthering criticism of Biden's judicial nominees on social media. Mike Davis of the conservative judicial group Article III Project urged Republicans to block all judicial appointments until January.

Democrats are under considerable pressure to confirm as many nominees as they can before the shift in Senate power. The timing is critical, as a new Republican majority would likely oppose many of Biden’s picks. For example, Senator Joe Manchin, a centrist Democrat from West Virginia, has stated that he will not vote for any nominee without bipartisan support.

Biden’s judicial appointments have focused on diversifying the federal bench, addressing a longstanding imbalance that had been dominated by white men. Democrats hope that confirming as many nominees as possible will solidify Biden’s legacy of diversifying the judiciary. Despite this, Biden's allies know that some nominees, such as Adeel Mangi, the first Muslim nominee for a federal appeals court, and North Carolina Solicitor General Ryan Park, will face opposition from Republicans, particularly after Mangi’s nomination was blocked by GOP senators prior to the election.

The White House has been actively working to confirm nominees quickly, with Andrew Bates, a spokesperson for the administration, noting that Trump’s Republican-controlled Senate had confirmed 18 judicial nominations in the final months of his presidency. Biden’s push aims to build on that momentum, despite the challenges posed by the incoming Republican majority.

One of the key nominees awaiting a vote is Perry, a former prosecutor now working at GE HealthCare. She has already been nominated twice—first for the position of Chicago’s federal prosecutor, and now for the district court judgeship. Her previous nomination was blocked by Republican Senator JD Vance, who has been placing holds on Biden’s Justice Department nominees since the former president faced multiple criminal charges.

As the Senate's "lame-duck" session continues, judicial confirmations will be a central focus, with Biden's allies in the Senate aiming to move as many nominees through the process as possible before the Republican-led Congress begins in January. The final outcome will depend on the extent to which Senate Democrats can rally enough votes in a tightly divided chamber to secure confirmations before the new year.