Ketanji Brown Jackson was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on Thursday, becoming the first Black woman Justice in the nation’s history.
Jackson was confirmed to the Supreme Court by a vote of 53-47 with bipartisan support. Republican Senators Mitt Romney of Utah, Susan Collins of Maine, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska joined the Senate’s 50 Democrats to support her confirmation. Jackson is set to assume her position in retiring Justice Stephen Breyer’s seat next term, which begins in October.
“Judge Jackson’s confirmation will be a glass shattering achievement for America,” said Senator Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois.
Jackson’s historic confirmation will not change the ideological makeup of the Supreme Court. She joins a bench with a 6-3 conservative majority—the smallest liberal minority in a generation. Former colleagues and mentors of Jackson’s tell TIME they expect she will strive to be in the majority with her colleagues whenever possible, seeking out compromise and consensus from the minority position.
Read More: What Ketanji Brown Jackson Could Bring to the Supreme Court
Jackson’s bipartisan confirmation is a win for President Joe Biden, after a contentious and at points inflammatory confirmation process. Jackson is the first Democratic appointee to the high court in 13 years, and she brings professional experience the bench otherwise lacks, including expertise on matters of criminal justice and sentencing disparities. Jackson, most recently a judge on the D.C. Circuit Court, will be the first former public defender to ever serve on the Supreme Court.
The high court could reshape major elements of American life in coming months with rulings on abortion access, gun rights, and religious liberty, and its reputation is at a crucial…
Source : time
