With less than 6 months to go until November’s election, President Joe Biden on Wednesday secured the milestone of having 200 federal judges confirmed by the U.S. Senate.

What You Need To Know

  • The U.S. Senate on Wednesday confirmed the 200th federal judge under President Joe Biden's administration, a major milestone ahead of November's election

  • The figure highlights the emphasis that Biden and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., have placed on reshaping the federal judiciary for the last four years, particularly in the wake of Trump's three Supreme Court picks, which reshaped the ideological balance of the high court

  • Biden has outpaced his two immediate predecessors in terms of judicial confirmations; at this point in Trump's presidency, the Senate confirmed 196 lifetime judges to the federal bench

  • It's possible that Biden can surpass Trump's 234 total, but that could prove tricky with the Senate's schedule ahead of the November election; Schumer vowed that Democrats "will keep going" to confirm more judges

The number, while slightly shy of the 234 Biden’s presumptive Republican opponent, former President Donald Trump, installed during his sole White House term, highlights the emphasis that the Democratic president and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., have placed on reshaping the federal judiciary for the last four years -- particularly in the wake of Trump's three Supreme Court picks, which reshaped the ideological balance of the highest court in the land.

Biden has also emphasized adding minority and female judges to the bench, building on his campaign promise to "nominate and appoint federal officials and judges who look just like the rest of America."

The Senate on Wednesday voted 66-28 to confirm Angela Martinez to serve as U.S. District Judge for the District of Arizona, becoming the 200th judge confirmed to the federal bench under Biden’s administration. Martinez, 51, was appointed last year to serve as a United States magistrate judge on that same court, and was previously an assistant U.S. attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona.

In a statement on Wednesday, Biden hailed the milestone as an "effort to protect the freedoms and liberties of all Americans."

The president lauded the diversity of the 200 judges, noting that 64% of the group are women and 62% are people of color, as well as their wide range of backgrounds, including service as public defenders, as labor lawyers and civil rights attorneys, while noting that "despite differences in background and experience, they are all committed to principles that are at the core of our democracy: independence, freedom, and liberty."

After Martinez's confirmation, the Senate then moved quickly to vote on the confirmation of Dena M. Coggins to serve as U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of California. If confirmed, she would be the first Black woman to serve as a federal judge for the Eastern District of California, according to progressive judicial advocacy group Alliance for Justice. 

"Judges matter," Biden continued. "These men and women have the power to uphold basic rights or to roll them back. They hear cases that decide whether women have the freedom to make their own reproductive healthcare decisions; whether Americans have the freedom to cast their ballots; whether workers have the freedom to unionize and make a living wage for their families; and whether children have the freedom to breathe clean air and drink clean water."

The focus on federal judges comes as the election, which will not only determine the presidency, but also control of the U.S. Senate, which controls the judiciary confirmation process, looms.

Whichever party wins in November will be able to shape the direction of the courts in the near future, and could potentially oversee multiple Supreme Court nominations: After next year's inauguration, Justice Clarence Thomas will be 76, Justice Samuel Alito will be 74 and Justice Sonia Sotomayor will be 70, while Chief Justice John Roberts will turn 70 later that month.

Biden has outpaced his two immediate predecessors in terms of judicial confirmations; at this point in Trump's presidency, the Senate confirmed 196 lifetime judges to the federal bench. That figure is also notable given Democrats' narrow control of the Senate and the all-important Judiciary Committee.

It's possible that Biden can surpass Trump's 234 total -- there are 44 vacancies and 17 nominees pending, according to the U.S. Courts website -- but that could prove tricky with the Senate's schedule ahead of the November election.

"Senate Democrats are very proud of our record," Schumer said in a video message posted to social media after Martinez's confirmation. "We're proud of our judges."

"And we will keep going," he pledged.