The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 13-6 yesterday to approve Judge Sonia Sotomayor’s nomination to the US Supreme Court. The committee’s decision means that a full Senate vote on Sotomayor’s confirmation is likely to occur next week, reports the New York Times.
Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) was the only Republican on the Judiciary Committee to vote for Sotomayor’s confirmation. Five Republicans, including Senator Graham, have stated that they will vote to confirm Sotomayor in the full Senate vote. The Democratic supermajority in the Senate makes Sotomayor’s confirmation likely.
Judge Sotomayor was appointed to the District Court for the Southern District of New York by former President George H.W. Bush and was appointed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit by former President Bill Clinton. President Obama nominated her as a Supreme Court justice earlier this year. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is currently the only woman seated on the Court. Former Justice Sandra Day O’Connor retired in 2005.
