Washington, D.C. – The Senate confirmed Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court in a mostly party-line vote Friday.
Gorsuch will fill the seat left vacant after Justice Antonin Scalia passed away in February 2016. He will be sworn in Monday.
The confirmation process saw a bitter fight in the Senate, with Democrats blocking the vote with a filibuster. Republicans responded by triggering the so-called “nuclear option”—changing Senate rules to allow a simple 51-vote majority instead of the 60-vote threshold.
While Gorsuch was mostly praised by Republicans, Democrats raised concerns about his ideology.
In addition, Democratic opposition to the nominee was also fueled by Republicans’ blockade of former President Obama’s nominee Merrick Garland to replace Scalia.
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