They aren’t elected, but the nine Supreme Court justices are poised to help sway voters this November in the bitter fight for the Senate majority.
Democrats are warning that if Republicans hold onto the Senate gavel, they’ll be able to usher through more of President Trump’s “MAGA” picks for the Supreme Court.
Republicans say a Democrat-controlled Senate will lead to increasing the number of justices on the high court or imposing term limits — two proposals liberal-leaning lawmakers say they plan to advance the first chance they get.
People were interested in these podcasts
Republicans also warn that a Democrat-controlled Senate could also prevent Mr. Trump from winning confirmation of Supreme Court justices if a vacancy occurs.
“If we lose the Senate majority, Democrats could hold the president’s nominee hostage. We can’t let that happen,” said a GOP fundraising email sent to voters this month.
Democrats won’t commit to bringing a Trump Supreme Court nominee to the floor for a vote if they are in charge of the Senate for the final two years of his administration.
“The bottom line is one of the reasons that we want to make sure — do everything we can to take back the Senate — is to not let Trump put such horrible justices — MAGA justices — on the Supreme Court and the lower courts,” Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, New York Democrat, said last month, when asked how he’d handle a Trump nomination.
The two parties are dueling over their Supreme Court agendas ahead of the election.
For Republicans, it’s preventing a left-leaning takeover and preserving the court’s 6-3 ratio of justices, a majority of whom were nominated by Republican presidents.
Democrats have made no secret of their intention to make significant changes to the court. One plan, promoted by the party’s de facto leader and top 2028 prospect, former Vice President Kamala Harris, would expand the number of justices by loading it up with liberal picks who would outnumber the six justices appointed by Republicans.
“We need more justices on the Supreme Court so that we can have a court that actually reinforces the spirit and principles behind the Constitution of the United States,” Mrs. Harris said during a recent interview on Keke Palmer’s podcast, “Baby, This is Keke Palmer.”
Senate Democrats have prepped legislation to impose term limits for high court justices, and it’s a plan touted by other Democrats who might run for president in 2028.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is eyeing a White House run, said on a podcast this summer that “it’s time to have the conversation” about term limits for Supreme Court justices and members of Congress.
Republicans said they are ringing alarm bells for GOP voters “who are not energized yet” that “the Supreme Court is on the ballot.”
Sen. Steve Daines, a Montana Republican who headed the GOP’s campaign arm in the Senate during the last election, told Fox News Digital he alerted the White House that voters need to hear a louder warning from the president about the implications for the high court if Democrats win.
“If we have a vacancy, Sotomayor, Clarence Thomas, who knows — we could not, President Trump could not move through a Supreme Court justice,” Mr. Daines said.
Neither Justice Sonia Sotomayor, 72, nor Justice Thomas, 78, has indicated they plan to retire. Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., 76, said he considered retiring this year and will again weigh whether to make an exit in 2027.
A Supreme Court vacancy during Mr. Trump’s final two years in office would likely face a wall of resistance in a Democrat-controlled Senate. Party leaders could refuse to bring a Trump nominee to the floor, thanks to a precedent set by former Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in March of 2016.
Mr. McConnell, Kentucky Republican, refused to bring up President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland, after the sudden death of Justice Antonin Scalia.
Mr. McConnell argued it was too close to the November election to confirm a replacement. Voters, he said, should have a chance to weigh in on the presidency first.
The vacancy and Mr. McConnell’s defiance thrust the Supreme Court into the center of the presidential election. Mr. Trump’s campaigning on a list of conservative picks was credited with helping him win over conservative voters in 2016.
After his 2016 win, Mr. Trump nominated Justice Neil M. Gorsuch to the high court. Mr. Garland later became attorney general during the Biden administration.
Some Republicans see the Supreme Court as a way to turn out conservative voters in a tough midterm election for the GOP. However, affordability, not the high court, is the top issue in the 2026 midterms.
Both parties’ candidates are nonetheless dedicating time at their campaign rallies and on debate stages to elevate the Supreme Court in voters’ minds.
In Maine, where a pivotal Senate race will help decide control of the upper chamber, Democrat Troy Jackson repeatedly attacked his GOP opponent, five-term Republican incumbent Sen. Susan Collins, over the deciding vote she cast to confirm Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh.
Mr. Kavanaugh later voted to overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision legalizing abortion.
Ms. Collins has always supported abortion access and has said she believed Mr. Kavanaugh would not vote to throw out the landmark decision.
Mr. Jackson, who once opposed abortion but now supports it, is backed by reproductive rights groups who are attacking Ms. Collins with mailers accusing her of opposing “reproductive rights.”
Mr. Jackson is piling on, too.
“She still won’t admit she was wrong in putting Brett Kavanaugh on,” Mr. Jackson said during one of four debates between the two candidates.
Contact the author
Please read our comment policy before commenting.