Tagvacancy

Monthly tracker: Article III federal judicial nominations by president by days in office since 2001

By Myj Saintyl
In Federal
April 13, 2023 at 12:37 PM

Through April 13, 2023, there were 890 authorized federal judicial posts and 76 vacancies. Seventy-four of those were for Article III judgeships. This repo​​rt is limited to Article III courts, where appointees are confirmed to lifetime judgeships.

  • In the past month, 10 judges have been confirmed
  • In the past month, four judges have been nominated.

By April 1, 802 days in office, President Joe Biden (D) had nominated 152 judges to Article III judgeships. For historical comparison*: 

  • President Donald Trump (R) had nominated 246 individuals, 150 of which were ultimately confirmed to their positions.
  • President Barack Obama (D) had nominated 178 individuals, 119 of which were confirmed.
  • President George W. Bush (R) had nominated 223 individuals, 140 of which were confirmed.

*Note: These figures include unsuccessful nominations.

The following data visualizations track the number of Article III judicial nominations by president by days in office during the Biden, Trump, Obama, and W. Bush administrations (2001-present). 

The first tracker is limited to successful nominations, where the nominee was ultimately confirmed to their respective court:

The second tracker counts all Article III nominations, including unsuccessful nominations (for example, the nomination was withdrawn or the U.S. Senate did not vote on the nomination), renominations of individuals to the same court, and recess appointments. A recess appointment is when the president appoints a federal official while the Senate is in recess.

The second tracker counts all Article III nominations, including unsuccessful nominations (for example, the nomination was withdrawn or the U.S. Senate did not vote on the nomination), renominations of individuals to the same court, and recess appointments. A recess appointment is when the president appoints a federal official while the Senate is in recess.

The data contained in these charts is compiled by Ballotpedia staff from publicly available information provided by the Federal Judicial Center. The comparison by days shown between the presidents is not reflective of the larger states of the federal judiciary during their respective administrations and is intended solely to track nominations by president by day.

Correction: In our February, March, and April updates, there were errors in our nominations calculations for President Joe Biden. We have fixed these and regret the errors.

Additional reading:

Current federal judicial vacancies

Judicial vacancies in federal courts

Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden

The Federal Judicial Vacancy Count 4/1/2023



Eight state supreme court vacancies announced by mid-March 2023

By Marielle Bricker
In State
March 21, 2023 at 6:20 PM

As of March 14, there have been eight state supreme court vacancies or vacancy announcements in 2023 for judges whose replacements are chosen via appointment instead of election. Alaska, California, North Dakota, and Tennessee each have one state supreme court vacancy. Delaware and Missouri each have two state supreme court vacancies.

Two judges vacated their seats after being appointed to different offices. The remaining six judges retired or plan to retire in 2023. Two vacancies have been filled, and two appointments have been made but the replacement judges have not yet taken office. The remaining four vacancies have not yet been filled.

Three vacancies are in states where a Democratic governor makes the appointment. Five vacancies are in states where a Republican governor makes the appointment.

From 2019 to 2022, there were 89 state supreme vacancies for judges whose replacements are chosen via appointment instead of election. The vacancies were created when five judges were appointed to different offices, 79 judges retired, four judges died, and one judge lost a retention election. During those years, 37 vacancies were filled by a Democratic governor, 48 vacancies were filled by a Republican governor or Republican-controlled state legislature, and four vacancies were filled by a nonpartisan state supreme court.

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Ballotpedia releases federal judicial vacancy count for June 2022

By Brittony Maag
In Federal
July 6, 2022 at 4:16 PM

In this month’s federal judicial vacancy count, Ballotpedia tracked nominations, confirmations, and vacancies in Article III courts during the month of June through July 1, 2022. Ballotpedia publishes the federal judicial vacancy count at the start of each month.

Highlights

  • Vacancies: There have been three new judicial vacancies since the May 2022 report. There are 75 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, 77 of 890 active federal judicial positions are vacant.
  • Nominations: There were nine new nominations since the May 2022 report.
  • Confirmations: There were three confirmations since the May 2022 report.

Three judges left their respective courts, creating Article III life-term judicial vacancies, since the previous vacancy count. As Article III judicial positions, 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.

U.S. Court of Appeals vacancies

The following chart tracks the number of vacancies on the United States Court of Appeals at the inauguration of President Joe Biden (D) and at the date indicated on the chart.

The following maps show the number of vacancies on the United States Court of Appeals at Biden’s inauguration and as of July 1, 2022.

U.S. District Court vacancies

The following map shows the number of vacancies in the United States District Courts as of July 1, 2022.

New nominations

Biden announced nine new nominations since the previous report. Since taking office in January 2021, Biden has nominated 105 individuals to Article III positions.

New confirmations

The U.S. Senate confirmed three nominees since the previous report.

As of July 1, 2022, the Senate had confirmed 69 of Biden’s judicial nominees—52 district court judges, 16 appeals court judges, and one Supreme Court justice. To review a complete list of Biden’s confirmed nominees, click here.

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Six current vacancies in Missouri House of Representatives; oldest vacancy open since April 2021

By Maddie Sinclair Johnson
In State
April 27, 2022 at 12:39 PM

Six seats are currently vacant in the Missouri House of Reprsentatives, with the oldest open since April 21, 2021. On that date, former State Rep. Rick Roeber (R)—who represented District 34—was expelled from the House by unanimous vote due to allegations of child abuse. 

District 65 became vacant after the death of State Rep. Tom Hannegan (R) in Oct. 2021. District 114 has been vacant since Nov. 2021 and was previously held by Becky Ruth (R). In the first week of Jan. 2022, Districts 147, 108, and 61 all became vacant. They were held by Wayne Wallingford (R), Justin Hill (R), and Aaron Griesheimer (R) respectively. 

Vacancies in the Missouri General Assembly are filled through a special election called by the governor. Missouri is one of 25 states that fill vacancies in the state legislature through special elections. As of April 2022, 45 state legislative special elections have been scheduled nationwide for 2022 in 20 states. Missouri Gov. Mike Parson (R) has not called for any legislative special elections this year. All Missouri House of Representatives districts will be up for regular election on Nov. 8. 

In April, there were no irregular officeholder transitions in Missouri for offices within Ballotpedia’s coverage scope. This includes the resignation, death, appointment, or winning of a special election in positions such as a state executive office, a seat in the General Assembly, or a non-district judgeship. 

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Ballotpedia releases federal judicial vacancy count for February 2022

By Brittony Maag
In Federal
March 4, 2022 at 11:47 AM

In February’s federal judicial vacancy count, Ballotpedia tracked nominations, confirmations, and vacancies in Article III courts during the month of February through March 1. Ballotpedia publishes the federal judicial vacancy count at the start of each month.

HIGHLIGHTS

Two judges left active status, creating Article III life-term judicial vacancies, since the previous vacancy count. As Article III judicial positions, 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.

U.S. Court of Appeals vacancies

The following chart tracks the number of vacancies on the United States Court of Appeals at the inauguration of President Joe Biden (D) and at the date indicated on the chart.

The following maps show the number of vacancies on the United States Court of Appeals at Biden’s inauguration and as of March 1, 2022.

New nominations

Biden has announced two new nominations since the January 2022 report.

Since taking office in January 2021, Biden has nominated 83 individuals to Article III positions.

New confirmations

The U.S. Senate confirmed one nominee since the previous report.

As of March 1, the Senate had confirmed 46 of Biden’s judicial nominees—32 district court judges and 14 appeals court judges. To review a complete list of Biden’s confirmed nominees, click here.

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Abe Hudson Jr. resigns from Mississippi state House

By Corinne Wolyniec
In State
September 3, 2021 at 2:04 PM

Mississippi state Rep. Abe Hudson Jr. (D-29) resigned on Aug. 30. 

“Serving in this capacity has been one of the highest honors and proudest accomplishments of my life,” Hudson said in a video he posted to Facebook. “I believe that my transition will allow both the Mississippi Delta and I to grow. Furthermore, it will allow someone with a fresh perspective to lead our area out of many of the challenges that we’ve aggressively started to address.”

Hudson was first elected to represent Mississippi’s 29th House District in a special election in 2016. He defeated Earl Lucas in a runoff election, 62.7% to 37.3%. Hudson ran unopposed in the 2019 general election. 

If there is a vacancy in the Mississippi State Legislature, the governor must call for an election no later than 30 days after the vacancy occurs. The winner of the election will serve the remainder of Hudson’s four-year term, which was set to expire in January 2024.

So far in 2021, there have been 94 state legislative vacancies in 37 states. Three of those vacancies occurred in Mississippi.

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Seven applicants in the running for vacant Texas Supreme Court seat

By Brittony Maag
In State
August 20, 2021 at 2:58 PM

Seven applicants are vying for an open seat on the Texas Supreme Court as of Aug. 18. The applicants are seeking to fill a vacancy on the court created when former Justice Eva Guzman stepped down on June 11 to run for Texas attorney general.

Under Texas law, in the event of a midterm vacancy, the governor appoints a replacement. The Texas state Senate must then confirm the nominee. Appointees serve until the next general election, in which he or she must participate in a partisan election to remain on the bench for the remainder of the unexpired term. Guzman’s replacement will be Gov. Greg Abbott’s (R) fifth nominee to the nine-member supreme court.

The seven applicants are:

  • Judge Josh Burgess
  • Judge April Farris
  • Attorney Harston Dustin “Dusty” Fillmore III
  • Attorney and former Judge Ysmael D. Fonseca Jr.
  • Arbitrator and former Judge Michael Massengale
  • Judge Ken Wise
  • Attorney and former Judge Alicia Franklin York

As of this writing, Abbott had not released a timeline for filling the vacant seat.

In 2021, there have been 15 supreme court vacancies in 13 of the 29 states where replacement justices are appointed instead of elected. To date, 12 of those 15 vacancies have been filled.

Additional reading:



Ballotpedia releases federal judicial vacancy count for July 2021

By Kate Carsella
In Federal
August 3, 2021 at 3:11 AM

In this month’s federal judicial vacancy count, Ballotpedia tracked nominations, confirmations, and vacancies in Article III courts from July 2 to Aug. 1. Ballotpedia publishes the federal judicial vacancy count at the start of each month.

HIGHLIGHTS

  • Vacancies: There have been two new judicial vacancies since the June 2021 report. There are 80 vacancies out of 870 active Article III judicial positions on courts covered in this report. Including the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and the U.S. territorial courts, 84 of 890 active federal judicial positions are vacant.
  • Nominations: There were no new nominations since the June 2021 report.
  • Confirmations: There has been one new confirmation since the June 2021 report.

Two judges left active status, creating Article III life-term judicial vacancies, since the previous vacancy count. As Article III judicial positions, 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.

U.S. Court of Appeals vacancies

The following chart tracks the number of vacancies on the United States Court of Appeals from the inauguration of President Joe Biden (D) to the date indicated on the chart.

The following maps show the number of vacancies on the United States Court of Appeals at the inauguration of President Joe Biden (D) and as of Aug. 1.

File:UUbHy-court-of-appeals-vacancies-biden-inauguration-.png

New nominations

President Joe Biden (D) has announced no new nominations since the June 2021 report.

New confirmations

As of Aug. 1, the Senate has confirmed eight of President Biden’s judicial nominees—five district court judges and three appeals court judges—since January 2021.

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Lynn DeCoite appointed to Hawaii State Senate, creating vacancy in state House

By Corinne Wolyniec
In State
June 29, 2021 at 12:21 PM

Hawaii Governor David Ige (D) appointed Lynn DeCoite (D) to the District 7 seat in the Hawaii State Senate on June 17. The seat became vacant in May when former state Sen. Jamie Kalani English (D) retired due to the long-term health effects of a past COVID-19 infection. DeCoite to serve the remainder of Kalani English’s term, which was set to expire in November 2022.

At the time she was appointed, DeCoite was serving her fourth term in the Hawaii House of Representatives. Governor Ige appointed DeCoite to represent District 13 in February 2015, after former state Rep. Mele Carroll (D) resigned. DeCoite won re-election in 2016, 2018, and 2020.

DeCoite’s appointment to the state Senate creates a vacancy in the state House. When a vacancy occurs in the Hawaii legislature, the governor must appoint a replacement within 60 days after the vacancy happens. The governor selects from a list of three prospective candidates submitted by the political party that last held the vacant seat.

Hawaii is one of ten states that fill state legislative vacancies through gubernatorial appointment.

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Ohio House of Representatives expels former speaker Larry Householder

By Madison Adkins
In State
June 21, 2021 at 12:01 PM

The Ohio House of Representatives voted 75-21 on June 16 to expel former House Speaker Larry Householder (R).

Householder was arrested on July 21, 2020, and charged with conspiracy to participate in a racketeering scheme. He allegedly participated in a $60 million bribery case related to the legislative passage of a $1.5 billion funding bill for two nuclear power plants. Four other people, including former Ohio Republican Party Chairman Matt Borges, were also arrested.

“I have not nor have I ever taken a bribe or solicited or been solicited for taking a bribe,” Householder said. Majority leader Bill Seitz (R) defended Householder, saying, “There is no evidence against Larry Householder, only allegations.”

Minority leader Emilia Sykes (D) said in a statement, “There’s no enjoyment in today’s news which will no doubt lead to the further deterioration of the public’s trust in our institutions.”

Householder previously served in the House from 1997 to 2004 and was again elected to represent District 72 in 2016. He was elected Speaker of the House in 2019.

Householder is the fourth state legislator to be removed from office so far in 2021. In 2020, only one legislator was removed from office.

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