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Ketanji Brown Jackson confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court

Ketanji Brown Jackson will be the first Black woman to sit on the U.S. Supreme Court.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Ketanji Brown Jackson has been confirmed by the U.S. senate to become the first Black woman to be on the U.S. Supreme Court.

Senators voted 53-47 to confirm Jackson’s nomination Thursday (April 7), with Vice President Kamala Harris presiding over the vote. Jackson and President Biden watched the vote come in at the White House.

Democrats unanimously approved Jackson, and three Republicans voted in favor of her nomination. The three Republican senators that supported Jackson were Susan Collins of Maine, who was the first to publicly state she would vote for Jackson, as well as Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Mitt Romney of Utah.

Jackson will replace Justice Stephen Breyer after the court’s current term this summer. Breyer announced his retirement last year. Jackson is 51, so she’s likely to be on the court for decades before her retirement.

The balance of the Supreme Court won’t change with Jackson’s appointment. She will be one of three justices put on the court by a Democratic president. The six other justices were placed on the court by Republican presidents.

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