Joe Biden vows to put the first black woman on Supreme Court

President Joe Biden plans to give the US Supreme Court its first black female member - and he wants a speedy nomination process.

Stephen Breyer formally announces his retirement alongside Joe Biden at the White House on Thursday. Picture: AFP

President Joe Biden said on Thursday (Friday AEDT) he will nominate a black woman to the US Supreme Court for the first time, filling the vacancy left by retiring judge Stephen Breyer.

“I’ve made no decision except (the) person I will nominate will be someone with extraordinary qualifications, character, experience and integrity,” Mr Biden said from the White House.

“And that person will be the first black woman ever nominated to the United States Supreme Court.”

Mr Biden, speaking at a podium alongside Justice Breyer, also indicated he would seek a speedy nomination process, promising to name his candidate by the end of February.

The exit of Justice Breyer, 83, gives Mr Biden a likely smooth opportunity to name a replacement to the lifelong seat on the Supreme Court while his Democratic Party retains control of the Senate.

The Supreme Court is split between six conservatives and three liberals. Mr Biden will now be able to nominate another liberal-leaning jurist to the court, maintaining the balance.

Justice Breyer had been under pressure from liberals to leave in time for Mr Biden to get his nominee through the Senate before November’s midterm elections, when Republicans are in a strong position to win majorities in congress and would then control the approval process.

As president, Donald Trump had the rare opportunity to put no fewer than three new justices on the court, fundamentally shifting its political leaning for potentially years to come. Mr Biden’s one pick so far will have nowhere near that level of impact. However, the Democrat will be glad of a successful confirmation process, delivering a much needed morale boost to his party ahead of the midterms.

As an immediate reminder of the tensions Supreme Court confirmations often provoke, Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell warned Mr Biden “not to outsource this important decision to the radical left”. “To the degree that President Biden received a mandate, it was to govern from the middle,” he said.

In his resignation letter, published on Thursday, Justice Breyer underlined the co-ordinated plan to ensure that the succession moves with minimal upheaval, confirming he will stay on the court through the packed current term – but not before his replacement is ready. “I intend this decision to take effect when the court rises for the summer recess this year (typically late June or early July) assuming that by then my successor has been nominated and confirmed,” he wrote.

Mr Biden promised to put an African-American woman on the court back when he was campaigning for the Democrat nomination. The vow was part of his vital outreach to the black community, which became a crucial component in ultimately defeating a crowded field and then unseating Mr Trump.

Mr Biden put the first black and South Asian woman, Kamala Harris, on the ticket as his Vice- President, and since taking office has also pushed hard to place more women and ethnic minorities as senior judges. Mr Biden said in the search for Justice Breyer’s replacement, he would be asking Ms Harris to help, describing her as “an exceptional lawyer” and noting she was a former member of the Senate judiciary committee – a body he himself led while serving as a senator.

Among the leading candidates are Ketanji Brown Jackson, a US Court of Appeals judge, and Leondra Kruger, of the California Supreme Court.

AFP