The Senate voted Monday evening to begin debate on the nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, setting her up to become the first black woman appointed to the nation’s highest court.
The upper chamber voted 53-47 to discharge Jackson’s nomination from the Senate Judiciary Committee, which earlier on Monday deadlocked 11-11 on sending her nomination to the Senate floor. The successful discharge means that Jackson is on track for final confirmation this week.
All Democrats voted in favor of proceeding to debate the nomination, as did three Republicans: Mitt Romney of Utah, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, and Susan Collins of Maine.
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Jackson is President Joe Biden’s nominee to replace the retiring Justice Stephen Breyer.
Monday’s vote followed a contentious hearing process, in which Republicans questioned Jackson on a series of topics ranging from culture war issues to her sentencing record as a trial judge in cases involving child pornography offenses. Republican senators on Monday raised these issues as influencing their opposition, while Democrats praised Jackson’s qualifications and the historic nature of her nomination.
“This is a joyous and history-making moment for the Senate, a historic one: 115 individuals have come before this chamber for consideration to the highest court in the land, but none — none — were like Judge Jackson,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer just before Monday night’s vote.
Some Republicans on the committee, including Sens. Josh Hawley, Ted Cruz, and Lindsey Graham, characterized Jackson’s sentences in child pornography cases as lenient, while Jackson and her supporters said she issued sentences within legal norms.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn asked Jackson to define the term “woman,” a question prompted by efforts to permit or ban transgender student-athletes from competing on teams corresponding to their gender identity rather than their biological sex.
Graham and Sen. Chuck Grassley, both of whom were previous chairs of the committee during Republican majorities, voiced objections to how the committee treated then-President Donald Trump’s nominees.
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The tied vote in the committee prompted Schumer to advance the nomination by filing the motion to discharge, which was debated by the Senate for several hours. The Senate is expected to file cloture on the motion on Tuesday, which will prompt additional debate of up to 30 hours, leaving the body on track to confirm Jackson prior to its Easter recess.
