Why is there a vacancy on the Supreme Court?
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died of complications with metastatic pancreas cancer on Sept. 18. Ginsburg was appointed to the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) by former U.S. President Bill Clinton in 1993, serving as the second woman justice on the bench following her colleague, Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor.
Ginsburg was most well known for her dissenting court opinions she issued on the bench, and she consistently used her tenure to advocate for gender parity. Ginsburg was a major leader and public figure for American women’s rights, and she used her place in the law to strategically deconstruct discrimination on the basis of sex. In a public statement, Chief Justice John Roberts said Ginsurg will be remembered as “a tireless and resolute champion of justice.”
How is the seat filled?
Ginsburg’s vacant seat on the court is now being contested within the federal government Under Article III of the Constitution of the United States of America, the sitting president has the capacity to nominate a new justice.
Under Article III, there is no limit for how many justices sit on the Supreme Court bench. Prior to Justice Ginsburg’s passing, there were nine justices—one chief justice and eight associate justices—on the bench. Nine sitting justices are the standard since former U.S. President Ulyssess S. Grant’s administration in 1869.
Under Article III, the typical process for appointing a supreme court justice is as follows:
- The sitting president nominates their choice for a justice.
- The nominated justice goes through confirmation hearings within the U.S. Senate.
- Once they are confirmed by the Senate, the justice holds their seat in the court for life.
When will the seat get filled?
When Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died on Feb. 23, 2016, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell spent a year blockading former U.S. President Barack Obama’s justice nomination, claiming, “The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.” Now, with only 41 days left until the 2020 presidential election, McConnell drastically shifted his rhetoric.
“President Trump’s nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate,” McConnell said after Ginsburg’s death was made public.
Prior to her death, Ginsburg told her granddaughter, “My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.” Opposing politicians to McConnell are reiterating this sentiment and are pushing to delay the appointment of a new justice until after the election.
“The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president,” Democrat Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, said in a tweet on Sept. 18, reiterating McConnell’s 2016 statement verbatim to send a message of opposition to filling Ginsburg’s seat prior to the 2020 presidential election.
Who is going to fill the seat?
U.S. President Donald Trump released his potential supreme court justices on Sept. 9, listing 20 names of those he may seek to nominate for Ginsburg’s seat. President Trump listed Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, Republican Sen. Tom Cotton of Arizona and Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri as potential nominees. However, according to the New York Times, Amy Coney Barrett, Amul Thapar, Raymond Kethledge, James C. Ho, Thomas M. Hardiman and William H. Pryor Jr. are among the top six potential candidates up for the nomination.