Why It Matters
Lame duck judicial confirmations have been a recurring feature of postwar Senate practice, with the chamber confirming at least one circuit or district court nominee in 16 of 21 lame duck sessions since 1946, according to a new Congressional Research Service (CRS) report.
Across those 16 sessions from 1950 to 2024, the Senate confirmed 22 circuit and 163 district court nominations. The five sessions with no confirmations were 1948, 1994, 2000, 2008 and 2016.
The Big Picture
The seven lame duck sessions since 2010 that produced confirmations account for about 58% of all 185 postwar circuit and district confirmations combined. Specifically, 11 of the 22 circuit confirmations (50%) and 97 of the 163 district confirmations (60%) came from those seven sessions.
The report links that recent concentration in part to the 113th Congress reinterpretation of Senate Rule XXII, which allowed cloture to be invoked on most nominations by a majority of senators voting rather than three-fifths.
Confirmations have followed midterm elections far more often than presidential ones: 19 of 22 circuit nominees (86%) and 114 of 163 district nominees (70%) were confirmed after midterms. Of the 49 district nominees confirmed after presidential elections, 46 (94%) came from just three cycles: 2012, 2020 and 2024.
The most recent instance of lame duck confirmations following a change in Senate majority party control was 2024, when the Senate confirmed one circuit and 21 district nominees during the 118th Congress lame duck session. In the 1950–2024 period covered by Figure 1 of the Congressional Research Service analysis, the Senate first confirmed circuit or district court nominees during a lame duck session that followed a change in majority control in 1954.
Most nominees later confirmed in lame duck sessions had been submitted before Election Day: 15 of 22 circuit nominees (68%) and 127 of 163 district nominees (78%) were formally nominated before the election. Pre-election circuit nominations were submitted an average of 245 days before the election; pre-election district nominations averaged 153 days. Those lead times suggest that nominees already in the pipeline before November are the most likely candidates for any post-election floor action.
Since the Twentieth Amendment was ratified in 1933, no Supreme Court justice has been confirmed during a lame duck session.
The Bottom Line
Most circuit and district court nominees confirmed in postwar lame-duck sessions were formally nominated before the election, including 68 percent of circuit and 78 percent of district nominees, and recent high confirmation totals coincide "in part" with the 113th Congress's reinterpretation of Senate Rule XXII.
Access the Legis1 platform for comprehensive political news, data, and insights
Spot something wrong? Report an issue with this article
