In this month’s federal judicial vacancy count, Ballotpedia tracked nominations, confirmations, and vacancies from July 2 through Aug. 1, 2026. Ballotpedia publishes the federal judicial vacancy count at the start of each month.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Vacancies: There have been two new judicial vacancies since the July 1, 2026, report. There are 25 vacancies out of 870 active Article III judicial positions on courts covered in this report. Including the United States Court of Federal Claims and the United States territorial courts, 25 of 890 active federal judicial positions are vacant.
- Nominations: There have been no new nominations since the previous report.
- Confirmations: There have been eight new confirmations since the previous report.
New vacancies
There were 25 vacancies out of 870 active Article III judicial positions, a total vacancy percentage of 2.9, which is 0.2 percentage points higher than the vacancy percentage in July.
- The nine-member U.S. Supreme Court does not have any vacancies.
- None of the 179 U.S. Appeals Court positions are vacant.
- Twenty-five (3.7%) of the 673 U.S. District Court positions are vacant.
- None of the nine U.S. Court of International Trade positions are vacant.
A vacancy occurs when a judge resigns, retires, takes senior status, or passes away. Article III judges, who serve on courts authorized by Article III of the Constitution, are appointed for life terms.
Two newjudges left active status, creating Article III life-term judicial vacancies. As Article III judicial positions, these vacancies must be filled by a nomination from the president. Nominations are subject to confirmation on the advice and consent of the U.S. Senate.
- Judge Daniel Traynor was elevated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.
- Judge Gregory F. Van Tatenhove retired from the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky.
Federal judicial vacancies
The following map shows the number of vacancies on the United States Court of Appeals as of Aug. 1, 2026.
The following map shows the number of vacancies in the United States District Courts as of August 1, 2026.
The following chart shows the number of federal judicial vacancies each month during the Trump administration from January 21, 2025 to August 1, 2026.
New nominations
President Trump has not announced any new nominations since the previousreport.
Since taking office in January 2025, President Trump has nominated 60 individuals to Article III positions.
New confirmations
Since the previous report, the U.S. Senate has confirmed eight of President Trump’s nominees to Article III seats:
- Antonio Pozos, to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
- Daniel Traynor, to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
- Benjamin Flowers, to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
- Michael Martin, to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan
- Kara Westercamp, to the U.S. Court of International Trade
- Jeffrey T. Kuntz, to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida
- Matthew Schwartz, to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
- Rob Jones, to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas
As of Aug. 1, the Senate has confirmed 53 of President Trump's judicial nominees — 42 district court judges, 10 appeals court judges, and one Court of International Trade judge — since January 2025.
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