Senate Confirms Ketanji Brown Jackson as First Black Woman on Supreme Court
Jackson will be only the third Black justice in the court's 233-year history.
- Carrie has lived on both coasts and can definitively say that Chesapeake Bay blue crabs are the best.
Jackson is poised to replace retiring Justice Stephen Breyer.
The Senate on Thursday voted 53-47 to confirm Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the US Supreme Court. The historic confirmation will make Jackson the first Black woman to serve on the high court once she's sworn in when Associate Justice Stephen Breyer retires this summer.
Three Republicans -- Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Mitt Romney of Utah and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska -- joined all 50 Democrats to vote in favor of Jackson. Vice President Kamala Harris presided over the vote.
"Judge Jackson's confirmation was a historic moment for our nation," President Joe Biden said in a tweet after the confirmation vote. "We've taken another step toward making our highest court reflect the diversity of America. She will be an incredible Justice, and I was honored to share this moment with her."
The vote caps a weeks-long push by Senate Democrats to get Jackson through sometimes contentious confirmation hearings. Biden nominated Jackson to the Supreme Court in February, calling her a "proven consensus builder" with a distinguished resume as both an attorney and a jurist.
Jackson will be only the third Black justice in the court's 233-year history. When she joins the court, it'll also be the first time that two African American justices are on the bench at the same time, as well as the first time four women serve simultaneously.
Jackson watched the vote Thursday alongside Biden in the Roosevelt Room of the White House. The president, along with Jackson and Harris, will deliver remarks on the historic confirmation vote on Friday.