Impact of Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death on Election 2020
Hello! How will the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg last Friday affect the 2020 elections?
President Donald Trump wants to nominate a replacement judge this weekend. Republican Senators hope to confirm the nominee this year.
President Trump and the Republican Party are defending 22 seats in the Senate. Democrats are defending 12 seats.
Republicans hope to use the Supreme Court vacancy to convince Republican voters to come out and vote with a purpose of making the Supreme Court more conservative.
President Trump suggested he wants to fill the vacancy quickly so that the Supreme Court could decide on the outcome of the presidential election, similar to what happened in 2000 between George W. Bush and Al Gore.
RBG’s death has helped with Vice President Joe Biden and the Democratic Party because over the weekend, more than $100 million in new donations came in to Democrat candidates running for state and federal levels via ActBlue, the online fundraising website for Democrats.
Currently, Republicans control the U.S. Senate, 53-47. There are 45 Democrats and 2 Independents.
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To confirm a justice, there needs to be a simple majority (50 votes).
Two Republican Senators said they would not align with the Republican party majority and support a vote -- Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine. How will their stance affect them?
Senator Murkowski can voice and vote however her constituents want since she was re-elected in 2016. An U.S. Senator’s term limit is six years, so Murkowski is safe until 2022.
For Senator Collins, she is facing her toughest re-election battle to win a 5th term against Democrat candidate Sara Gideon who is currently the House Speaker for the Maine State Legislature. Senator Collins has won each election with a greater victory margin but it seems like her popularity has waned. People in Maine are upset about Senator Collins’ votes to confirm Justice Brett Kavanaugh and to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which is President Obama’s healthcare law. The Maine legislature is now controlled by Democrats, but Sen. Collins is a Republican, so it’s a challenge for her.
Utah Senator Mitt Romney announced that he will support a vote for RBG’s replacement because President Trump’s pick will tip the court to become more conservative. Senator Romney was elected in 2019 and is not due for re-election until 2025. Some people are shocked by his move, but I am not shocked because he is, first and foremost, a Republican and he represents the state of Utah that is heavily Republican.
The Supreme Court nominee’s confirmation hearings could start in early October. This will be interesting because during my internship with Senator Tom Harkin about ten years ago, the Senate confirmed Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court in a 68 to 31 vote to replace retiring Justice David Souter. It was planned but with RBG’s death, it was totally unexpected.
That is all for now. I will see you next time.