Lauren King confirmed to U.S. district court

The U.S. Senate on Oct. 5 confirmed one of President Joe Biden’s (D)federal judicial nominees to a lifetime Article III judgeship:

• Lauren King, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, by a vote of 55-44

King was nominated to the Western District of Washington on May 12 to replace Judge Robert Lasnik, who assumed senior status on Jan. 27, 2016. King was rated as Well Qualified by a majority and Qualified by a minorityby theAmerican Bar Association. King will join the court upon receiving her judicial commission and taking her judicial oath.

King is a Muscogee Nation citizen. Once she receives her judicial commission, King will be the first Native American federal judge in Washington state’s history.

To date, 15 of Biden’s appointees have been confirmed. Forhistorical comparison since 1981, the following list shows the date by which the past six presidents had 15 Article III judicial nominees confirmed by the Senate:

1. PresidentDonald Trump (R) – Nov. 27, 2017
2. PresidentBarack Obama (D) – Jan. 25, 2010
3. PresidentGeorge W. Bush (R) – Nov. 6, 2001
4. PresidentBill Clinton (D) – Nov. 20, 1993
5. PresidentGeorge H.W. Bush (R) – Nov. 22, 1989
6. PresidentRonald Reagan (R) – Oct. 21, 1981

As of this writing, 12 Article III nominees are awaiting a confirmation vote from the U.S Senate, two nominees are awaiting a Senate Judiciary Committee vote to advance their nominations to the full Senate, and 22 nominees are awaiting a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Additional reading:

• Judicial vacancies during the Biden administration
• Judicial vacancies in federal courts
• Current federal judicial vacancies

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