Vice President Kamala Harris is going to preside over Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson's Supreme Court confirmation vote in the Senate on Thursday afternoon.
Jackson, who was the first Black woman nominated for the Supreme Court by President Joe Biden, had potentially need Harris' tiebreaking vote to overcome the 50 Republican votes in the Senate. Harris is the first Black woman to serve as vice president.
There is at least one GOP senator on board to vote yes for Jackson's confirmation, Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, meaning Harris' tiebreaking vote might not come into play. Jackson's discharge petition out of the Senate Judiciary Committee passed 53-47, with Collins voting with two Democrats and two independents along with Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Mitt Romney, R-Utah.
The Senate passed a procedural hurdle Thursday to move to the vote later in the afternoon.
"#Senate invoked cloture on Executive Calendar #860 Ketanji Brown Jackson to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, 53-47. Collins, Murkowski, & Romney voted AYE," the Senate press gallery tweeted.
Harris' status might have been in question because of a potential contact with a COVID-19 case. Her communications director, Jamal Simmons, tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, the White House said.
He was in close contact to Harris as defined by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance, the White House added. Harris plans to follow CDC guidance and continue her public schedule, it said.
In a separate statement, the White House said President Joe Biden's last COVID-19 test was on Monday and he had a negative result.
Information from Reuters was used in this report.
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