In this month’s federal judicial vacancy count, Ballotpedia tracked nominations, confirmations, and vacancies in Article III courts during the month of January through Feb. 1, 2022. Ballotpedia publishes the federal judicial vacancy count at the start of each month.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Vacancies: There have been five new judicial vacancies since the December 2021 report. There are 79 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, 81 of 890 active federal judicial positions are vacant.
- Nominations: There were eight new nominations since the December 2021 report.
- Confirmations: There were five confirmations since the December 2021 report.
Five 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.
- Judge Michael Juneau assumed senior status on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana.
- Judge Martin Feldman of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana died on January 26, 2022.
- Judge Elizabeth Foote assumed senior status on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana.
- Judge Julie Robinson assumed senior status on the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas.
- Judge Vanessa Gilmore retired from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas.
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 Biden’s inauguration and as of Feb. 1, 2022.
New nominations
Biden has announced eight new nominations since the December 2021 report.
- Arianna Freeman, to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
- Ana de Alba, to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California
- Tiffany Cartwright, to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington
- Nusrat Choudhury, to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
- Robert Huie, to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California
- Natasha Merle, to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
- Jennifer Rearden, to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
- Nina Y. Wang, to the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado
Since taking office in January 2021, Biden has nominated 82 individuals to Article III positions.
New confirmations
There have been five new confirmations since the December 2021 report.
- Holly Thomas, to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit
- Gabriel Sanchez, to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit
- Bridget Brennan, to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio
- Charles Fleming, to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio
- David Ruiz, to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio
As of Feb. 1, 2022, the Senate had confirmed 45 of Biden’s judicial nominees—32 district court judges and 13 appeals court judges. To review a complete list of Biden’s confirmed nominees, click here.
Additional reading:
- Current federal judicial vacancies
- Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden
- Judicial vacancies during the Biden administration
- Federal judicial appointments by president
- United States federal courts
