President Biden Confirms He Will Nominate a Black Woman to Be the Next SCOTUS Justice

On Thursday, January 27, Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer formally announced that he will retire at the end of the current term. (The Supreme Court term begins on the first Monday in October and lasts until the October of the following year, with a recess in late June or early July.) He served more than 27 years on the court.

At 83 years old, Breyer is the oldest Supreme Court justice and one of the three liberal justices, alongside Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan. He was nominated and appointed by former President Bill Clinton, and joined the court in 1994. Over the course of his tenure as justice, he was known for his “pragmatism, optimism, and cooperation with both political parties.”

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki tweeted on Wednesday, “It has always been the decision of any Supreme Court Justice if and when they decide to retire, and how they want to announce it, and that remains the case today.”

Breyer’s retirement paves the way for President Biden to nominate his replacement. It might be the only seat he’ll fill during his presidency, but if Republicans reclaim the Senate in this year’s midterm elections, Biden might be blocked from filling it at all. The Senate votes to confirm the president’s nominee; so if Republicans regain the majority, they are unlikely to confirm any Biden nomination.

On the campaign trail, Biden promised to nominate a Black woman to the Supreme Court, and during a press conference on Thursday, he confirmed this pledge. “The person I will nominate will be someone of extraordinary qualifications, character, experience and integrity. And that person will be the first Black woman ever nominated to the United States Supreme Court,” he said, per CNN. He will make his decision before the end of February.

“We want to move quickly. We want to get this done as soon as possible,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, per The New York Times.

Some of Biden’s potential nominees include DC Circuit Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, California Supreme Court Justice Leondra Kruger, and South Carolina U.S. District Court Judge J. Michelle Childs, civil rights attorney Sherrilyn Ifill, North Carolina Supreme Court Associate Justice Anita Earls, District Judge Wilhelmina “Mimi” Wright, Circuit Judge Eunice Lee, and Circuit Judge Candace Jackson-Akiwumi.

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