It’s Voting Tuesday! The future of the courts depends on us.

January 27, 2020

Regardless of who is in the White House in 2021, the U.S. Senate will serve as the most important check on presidential power, including the authority to approve or reject lifetime appointments to the federal courts.

A justice could leave the Supreme Court at any time for any reason. With two judges over the age of 80, the next U.S. Senate will likely determine the future of federal courts. A second term could give Trump two more picks, potentially allowing Trump to choose four of the Supreme Court’s nine justices over his tenure—which would be the most by any president since Richard Nixon.

Thirty-five of the 100 Senate seats are on the ballot this year. Experts have identified 17 of these races as competitive.

Ten extreme Anti-Choice incumbents are facing tight re-election races in 2020:

  • Martha McSally (R-Arizona)
  • Cory Gardner (R-Colorado)
  • Kelly Loeffler (R-Georgia)
  • David Perdue (R – Georgia)
  • Joni Ernst (R-Iowa)
  • Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky)
  • Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Mississippi)
  • Steve Daines (R-Montana)
  • Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina)
  • John Cornyn (R-Texas)

Three Incumbents who consistently vote to support reproductive rights are also facing tight races:

  • Gary Peters (D-Michigan)
  • Tina Smith (D-Minnesota)
  • Jeanne Shaheen (D-New Hampshire)

The list of competitive 2020 races includes two incumbents with mixed voting recordsDoug Jones (D-Alabama) and Susan Collins (R-Maine).

There are also two open seats, one with a retiring pro-choice incumbent (New Mexico) and one with a retiring anti-choice incumbent (Kansas).

Do you live in one of these states? Pick a pro-choice candidate, and let’s GET TO WORK.

Find out more about these races:  270 to Win and Ballotpedia

Illustration by João Fazenda

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