Senate Republicans Eye Judicial Nomination Blitz in Lame Duck

The Republican Party will likely not have control of the United States Senate until January 2033. Which means there will be no Conservative judges nominated to the courts until at least that time.

As such, all of President Trump’s outstanding judicial nominees must be confirmed before the Democrats take control of the upper chamber in early January.

These spineless, gutless wonders are the reason we took such a drubbing, They better do something.

Senate Republicans eye judicial nomination blitz in lame duck

By PunchBowl, November 7th, 2026

By Laura Weiss

Senate Republicans are preparing to rush through judicial nominees after the midterms, aiming to get many of President Donald Trump’s picks locked in before this Congress ends.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is planning to hold two judicial nomination hearings in November, when the Senate is scheduled to be in D.C. for less than two weeks. Additional hearings are expected during the three-week December session.

The goal for Grassley and Senate GOP leaders is to clear as many district and circuit court judges as possible before the year ends and the nomination process resets in January. But this effort will intensify if the Senate majority changes hands after midterm elections. In that case, Senate GOP leaders are likely to make judicial nominees a top priority for floor time.

If Senate Democrats have the majority next year, it would be far harder for Trump to fill judicial vacancies. There’s a lot of pressure on Democratic senators from the left not to play ball on any Trump-nominated judges.

Inside Grassley’s push. Judiciary has advanced 12 circuit judges and 47 district judges this Congress. The Senate has confirmed 10 of the circuit court picks and 46 of the district judges. One Court of International Trade judge also won confirmation.

Grassley has been moving at a fast clip, completing the process from nomination to confirmation for judges quicker than during Trump’s first administration. The turnaround time for district judges has been three times faster. The pace of judicial confirmations has been a notable bright spot for Senate GOP leaders this year.

Grassley touted this speed in a statement. “I’m keeping my nose to the grindstone and will continue working through the end of this Congress to confirm President Trump’s highly qualified, constitutionalist judges,” the Iowa Republican told us.

But Senate Republicans have faced challenges outside of their control that have limited how many judges they can confirm.

There’s been less turnover in the federal judiciary during Trump’s second term. Trump took office with fewer openings pending than in his first term, as Democrats confirmed their nominees quickly under former President Joe Biden.

The Trump White House sent its first judicial nomination to the Senate in the spring of 2025, meaning Judiciary had no picks to process for the first few months of the new administration. That’s partly why Grassley is aiming to do what he can now to make up time. Grassley is also term-limited at Judiciary, so these are his final few months with the gavel.

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Geller Report Staff

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