President Donald Trump (R) has appointed, and the U.S. Senate has confirmed, 17 Article III federal judges through Nov. 1 of the first year of his second term. This is the second-fewest number of Article III judicial appointments through this point in any president's second term since President Bill Clinton (D). The average number of federal judges appointed by previous presidents through Nov. 1 of the first year of their second term is 22.8.
By November of the first year of his second term, President Barack Obama (D) had the most appointees confirmed with 36, while President George W. Bush (R) had the fewest with 15.
No Supreme Court justices were appointed by this time in any president’s second term.
The median number of U.S. Court of Appeals appointees is six. Obama had the most, with nine, and Trump appointed the fewest, with four.
The median number of U.S. District Court appointees is 15.5. Obama had the most appointees, with 25, and W. Bush appointed the fewest, with seven.
Article III federal judges are appointed for life terms by the president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate under Article III of the United States Constitution. They include judges on the Supreme Court, U.S. courts of appeal, U.S. district courts, and the Court of International Trade.
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