Biden Passes Trump with 235 Federal Judges Confirmed

WASHINGTON, D.C., December 20, 2024 – Today was a notable milestone for President Biden as Senate Democrats voted on his 235th judicial confirmation, Serena Raquel Murillo (Central District of California), passing President Trump’s total of 234 during his first administration. These confirmations have transformed our courts by adding unprecedent professional and demographic diversity to the bench, including many movement lawyers who will help protect our civil rights, democracy, and rule of law from the next administration.

Today’s celebration, however, is bittersweet. Biden’s total is disproportionately made up of district court judges. Trump had two more Supreme Court confirmations and nine more court of appeals confirmations than Biden, granting him much more influence over those powerful courts. Today’s votes also come in the wake of a so-called “deal” that Majority Leader Chuck Schumer made to foreclose on four highly qualified circuit court nominees.

As one of those nominees, Third Circuit nominee Adeel Mangi, wrote this week: “We have a fundamentally broken process for choosing federal judges.” He decried the Islamophobic smears he endured from Senate Republicans and the way even some Democratic senators caved to the attacks to block his nomination. The circuit court vacancies Senate Democrats neglected to fill will be left for Trump to fill with conservative extremists.

Alliance for Justice Interim Co-President Keith Thirion issued the following statement:

“We celebrate today’s milestone of 235 judges confirmed and the incredible way President Biden and Senate Democrats have worked to transform our courts for the better. Still, the victory is tinged with the disappointment of knowing how much more could have been done. There were plenty of opportunities for senators to fight for the votes to get all the remaining nominees across the finish line — and then some. We deserve circuit court judges like Adeel Mangi and Karla Campbell, who would bring exceptional legal brilliance to the bench. Instead, Trump will likely have the opportunity to fill those lifetime appointments with extremists dedicated to a conservative agenda, and there’s nothing to celebrate about that.”