President Donald Trump (R) has appointed, and the U.S. Senate has confirmed, 53 Article III federal judges throughSept. 1, 2026, the second year of his second term in office. This is the third-highest number of Article III judicial appointments through this point in a president’s second term since President Bill Clinton (D). Presidents since Clinton have appointed an average of 71 Article III judges by Sept. 1 of their second year in their second term.
By September of the second year of his second term, President Barack Obama (D) had the most appointees confirmed, with 106. President George W. Bush (R) had the fewest, with 51.
The median number of Supreme Court appointees is zero. Only George W. Bush had appointed a justice to the Supreme Court by this point in his second term.
The median number of United States Court of Appeals appointees is 15. Obama had the most appointees, with 22. Trump appointed the fewest, with 10.
The median number of United States District Court appointees is 50. Obama had the most appointees, with 82. George W. Bush appointed the fewest, with 34.
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 appeals, U.S. district courts, and the Court of International Trade.
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