In this month’s federal judicial vacancy count, Ballotpedia tracked nominations, confirmations, and vacancies from Aug. 2 through Sept. 1, 2026. Ballotpedia publishes the federal judicial vacancy count at the start of each month.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Vacancies: There was one new judicial vacancy since the August report. There are 27 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, 27 of 890 active federal judicial positions are vacant.
- Nominations: There have been 13 new nominations since the previous report.
- Confirmations: There have been no new confirmations since the previous report.
New vacancies
There were 27 vacancies out of 870 active Article III judicial positions, a total vacancy percentage of 3.1, which is 0.2 percentage points higher than the vacancy percentage in August 2026.
- The nine-member U.S. Supreme Court does not have any vacancies.
- None of the 179 U.S. Appeals Court positions are vacant.
- Twenty-seven (4%) 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.
One new judge left active status, creating an Article III life-term judicial vacancy. 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.
Federal judicial vacancies
The following map shows the number of vacancies on the United States Court of Appeals as of September 1.
The following map shows the number of vacancies in the United States District Courts as of Sept. 1.
The following chart shows the number of federal judicial vacancies each month during the Trump administration from Jan. 21, 2025 to Sept. 1, 2026.
New nominations
President Trump has announced 13 new nominations since the previousreport.
- Lee Rudofsky, to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
- Samuel Adkisson, to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee
- Trevor Pemberton, to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma
- Zach West, to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma
- Kyle Reardon, to the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska
- Courtney Coker, to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas
- Richard Bennett, to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas
- Daniel Ballou, to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky
- Brad Kelley, to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana
- Peter Mansfield, to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana
- Robert E. Long Jr., to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida
- Jesus Osete, to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri
- Phil Axt, to the U.S. District Court for the District of North Dakota
Since taking office in January 2025, President Trump has nominated 73 individuals to Article III positions.
New confirmations
There have been no new confirmations since the previous report.
As of Sept. 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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