In his first term as President, Trump gained confirmation for 234 federal judges, and President Biden gained confirmation of 235 judges. Currently, some 47 federal judicial seats are vacant, and 20 more are occupied by judges who have announced plans to assume senior status, where another judge can be appointed in their place. However, there are only two vacancies on the important circuit courts of appeals, as opposed to the federal district courts. Federal judges serve for life and their influence can be felt for decades.
President Trump during his first Administration appointed highly qualified candidates recommended by the Federalist Society, a conservative legal group. Appointments tended to be conservative and relatively young. In his first term, his appointees were 76% male and 84% White. President Biden reportedly did more to advance diversity on the federal bench than any President in history. Over 60% of Biden’s 233 appointments were people of color, and 60% were women. Biden’s appointees came from areas such as public defenders, civil rights attorneys, and union labor lawyers.
Many believe that Trump’s judicial appointments were the highlight and most successful part of his first term, including his appointment of three Supreme Court justices.
Republican control of the Senate will work in the President’s favor, as the upper chamber must approve appointments. The ability to affect the federal judiciary will depend on how many judges decide to retire. In the Supreme Court, the older judges are Republican-appointments, with Justice Thomas at 76, and Justice Alito at 74. On the other hand, Justice Sotomayor is younger but reportedly in questionable health. There was some effort on the part of Democrats to get her to retire during the Biden Administration, but she did not do so.
In his first term, Trump shifted the balance of three circuit courts from Democratic to Republican, one of which switched back under Biden. Currently, Trump may be able to shift the Fourth Circuit in Richmond, Virginia, and the Tenth Circuit in Denver, Colorado, if Democratic-appointed judges decide to retire or take senior status.
There are many current controversial legal issues pending in the federal courts, some dealing with the power of federal agencies over government policy, and whether the court should overturn those policies. However, it is now the Democrats who will likely be making such challenges to federal agencies operating under Trump-appointed leadership, while during the Biden Administration the opposite was true.
This article is part of our February 2025 Newsletter.
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