How many Judges has Biden Appointed?

Critical Analysis

1. After almost two years in office President Biden has already seated 85 judges, including 25 to the powerful circuit courts of appeal and one—Ketanji Brown Jackson—to the Supreme Court. According to the data from the visual above, how does the number of judges Biden appointed in his first two years compare with other recent presidents?

2. If the trajectory of Biden’s judicial appointments continues, how many appointments will he have made at the end of one term in office?

3. According to The Economist, “the most enduring legacy of Donald Trump’s presidency are the 234 judges he installed in the federal courts, amounting to more than a quarter of America’s federal judiciary and a third of the Supreme Court.” According to the data from the visual above, how did Trump compare to other one term presidents since 1981?

4. In the 8 years in office, President Ronald Reagan appointed over 300 federal judges. According to Ballotpedia, 19 Reagan appointed federal judges are still serving on the bench today. 34 years after he left office. Make a claim about how important judicial nominations are.

5. Regardless of the outcome of the Georgia Senate runoff, Democrats have retained control of the Senate. How will this impact the fate of Biden’s judicial appointments of the next two years?

6. Joe Biden has appointed more female and non-white judges than any of his predecessors. About 75% are women and nearly a quarter are African-American. The table below compares the racial and gender diversity of President at the 566 day of office mark. How does does the gender and racial diversity of Biden’s judicial appointments compare to the diversity of his presidential predecessors as shown in the visuals below*?

7. What do you think is the main cause of that difference?

8. When former President Donald Trump left office in January, one of the most formidable aspects of his legacy was his imprint on the federal courts. In Trump’s four years in the White House, he appointed three Supreme Court justices, 54 appeals court judges and 174 district court judges, filling the judiciary with a raft of conservatives who were mostly white men. How have these judicial appointments impacted Biden’s presidency?

9. Make a claim about whether having a more demographically representative court is good for the United States.

10. When President Biden nominates someone for the federal courts who must approve that nominee?

Learning Extension

Check out the big picture of the diversity of federal judges from the American Constitution Society.

Action Extension

Contact President Biden and share your opinion on his judicial nominations.

Visual Extension*

Heritage Foundation