The Senate has confirmed Neil M. Gorsuch to the Supreme Court bench as its 113th and newest Justice after a confirmation vote late Friday morning. Gorsuch will take the seat vacated by the late Antonin Scalia last year.
After Thursday’s dramatic move in the Senate to end debate about Gorsuch’s nomination, his confirmation seemed all but certain with a majority of the Senate controlled by the Republican Party. In yesterday’s vote to invoke cloture, which was then changed in a procedural move by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, the 52-seat Republican majority stood firm in supporting Gorsuch, a federal judge from Colorado.
Just a simple 50-vote tally was needed in the Senate to confirm Gorsuch, with Vice President Mike Pence, a Republican, available to break a tie vote. On Friday, Gorsuch's confirmation was approved with several Democrats joining the Republican majority in the final vote. Rand Paul's vote at 11:42 a.m. put Gorsuch over the required vote total.
Gorsuch, 49, will be the youngest Justice to join the bench since Clarence Thomas joined was confirmed at the age of 43 back in 1991. He also will be the youngest member of the current Supreme Court. Historical terms, there have been Justices even younger than Thomas and Gorsuch who were named to the Court. Justices William Johnson and Joseph Story were both 32 years of age when nominated, and William O. Douglas was 40 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt proposed his nomination to the Senate.
President Donald Trump is expected to host an official oath ceremony early next week, where Chief Justice John Roberts would assume his traditional role of administering two oaths of office to Gorsuch. One is called the Constitutional Oath, the other is the Judicial Oath. (In some cases, the oaths are combined into one statement at a ceremony.)
In addition to the public ceremony, there could be an earlier private oath ceremony that allows the new Justice to get a head start on his job. For Gorsuch, who is joining the bench near mid-term, he will need to hire clerks and starting preparations for arguments and conferences that start on April 13.
The first Justice appointed to the Supreme Court was John Jay, who was nominated by President George Washington in September 1789, on the same day that John Rutledge was named as the Court’s second Justice.
Justice William O. Douglas was also the longest-serving member of the Court, at 36 years and 211 days. Thomas Johnson, another George Washington appointee, only served for 163 days on the Court, but he wrote its first opinion.
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