President Joe Biden began his presidency with fewer vacancies to fill than his predecessor. [1] [2] He pledged to nominate people with diverse backgrounds and professional experience; [3] further he pledged to nominate the first black woman to the Supreme Court of the United States. [4]
By the end of 2021, 41 judges had been confirmed, the most since Ronald Reagan. [1] By the end of his first year in office, Biden had nominated 73 individuals for federal judgeships, one more than Donald Trump during the same point in his presidency. [5]
As of January 8, 2024, Biden had made 10 nominations for federal judgeships that were not confirmed by the Senate and were not pending before the Senate. Of these, 2 were withdrawn by President Biden and 8 expired at an adjournment of the Senate.
Nominee | Court | Nomination date | ABA rating [Note 1] | Date of final action | Final action | Subsequent federal judicial nominations | Seat filled by | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Courts of appeals | ||||||||
Jabari Wamble | 10th Cir. | September 6, 2022 | — | January 3, 2023 | returned to the president | D. Kan. (nominated February 27, 2023, withdrawn May 30, 2023) | Richard Federico | [6] |
Michael Delaney | 1st Cir. | January 31, 2023 | WQ | May 30, 2023 | withdrawn by Pres. Biden | TBD | [7] | |
District courts | ||||||||
William Pocan | E.D. Wis. | December 15, 2021 | WQ | January 3, 2023 | returned to the president | TBD | [8] | |
Jorge Alberto Rodriguez | N.D.N.Y. | July 13, 2022 | — | January 3, 2023 | returned to the president | vacancy rescinded | [9] | |
Charnelle Bjelkengren | E.D. Wash. | September 19, 2022 | Q | January 3, 2024 | returned to the president | TBD | [10] [11] | |
Todd E. Edelman | D.D.C. | September 27, 2022 | WQ | January 3, 2024 | returned to the president | TBD | [12] [13] | |
Scott Colom | N.D. Miss. | November 15, 2022 | — | January 3, 2024 | returned to the president | TBD | [14] [15] | |
Marian Gaston | S.D. Cal. | January 23, 2023 | WQsm/Qmin | January 3, 2024 | returned to the president | TBD | [16] | |
Jabari Wamble | D. Kan. | February 27, 2023 | — | May 30, 2023 | withdrawn by Pres. Biden | TBD | [17] | |
Colleen Holland | W.D.N.Y. | September 11, 2023 | — | January 3, 2024 | returned to the president | TBD | [18] |
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