President Joe Biden (D) has appointed and the Senate has confirmed 201 Article III federal judges throughJuly 1, 2024, his fourth year in office. This is the most Article III judicial appointments made through this point in all presidencies since Ronald Reagan (R). The Senate had confirmed 200 of President Donald Trump’s (R) appointees at this point in his term.
The average number of federal judges appointed by previous presidents through July 1 of his fourth year in office is 179. By July of his fourth year, Reagan had the fewest confirmations with 148.
The median number of Supreme Court appointees is two. Two presidents (Reagan and Biden) made one appointment. Four presidents—George H.W. Bush (R), Bill Clinton (D), Barack Obama (D), and Trump—made two. President George W. Bush (R) did not appoint any Supreme Court justices by this point in his presidency.
The median number of United States Court of Appeals appointees is 35. Trump had the most appointees with 53. Reagan appointed the fewest with 27.
The median number of United States District Court appointees is 143. George W. Bush had the most appointees with 161. Reagan appointed the fewest with 117.
Article III federal judges are appointed for life terms by the president of the United States and confirmed by the U.S. Senate per Article III of the United States Constitution. Article III judges include judges on the: Supreme Court of the United States, U.S. courts of appeal, U.S. district courts, and the Court of International Trade.
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