The Senate confirmed one of President Donald Trump’s few Black judicial nominees with overwhelming bipartisan support, demonstrating continued willingness to move trial court appointments with the backing of most lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.
Roderick C. Young was confirmed 93-2 to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia where he is currently a magistrate judge.
His nomination was put forward by Virginia’s two Democratic senators and proceeded quickly, considering the slower pace of work on Capitol Hill during summer.
The routine judicial confirmation that occurred on Thursday was in sharp contrast to the pitched partisan acrimony unfolding over the nomination and expected confirmation of the next conservative Supreme Court justice.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) were the only two Democrats to vote no on Young. Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and several others sat out the vote.
While Trump has prioritized judicial appointments and the Republican-led Senate has moved aggressively to approve them, only 11 of his 161 district court appointees are Black, according to Federal Judicial Center data. None of his 53 appellate appointments are Black.
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