BREAKING: Brett Kavanaugh confirmed to U.S. Supreme Court

Michelle Marchante/Editor-in-Chief

Brett Kavanaugh has been confirmed to the United States Supreme Court with a final vote of 50-48 on Saturday, Oct. 6, following a controversial nomination process which included protests and an FBI investigation into allegations of sexual assault.

Crucial yes votes came from Republican senator Susan Collins of Maine, Democrat Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Republican senator Jeff Flake of Arizona. Without Collins, Kavanaugh’s confirmation would not have been possible after Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, a possible swing voter, broke from her party and voted no Friday, stating that her conscious wouldn’t allow her to vote yes.

However, Murkowski redrew her no Saturday and simply said “Present” after pairing her vote with Senator Steve Daines of Montana. Daines was planning on voting yes but could not be present Saturday because he was attending his daughter’s wedding. Through pairing, Murkowski was able to place Daines vote for him and remove hers since it would make no difference in the outcome.

Interviews filmed by Vivian Acosta. Edited by News Producer Lizandra Portal. Senate videos courtesy of C-Span.

Collins, like Murkowski, was also considered a potential swing voter. She kept her stance on Kavanaugh quiet until Friday, Oct. 5, when she delivered a 45-minute speech justifying her support of his nomination.

Manchin, on the other hand, was the only Democrat to cast a yes vote, because despite having reservations, based on all the information he’s reviewed, including the FBI report, he has found Kavanaugh to “be a qualified jurist who will follow the Constitution and determine cases based on the legal findings before him,” according to the statement he posted on his website.

Screenshot of Manchin’s statement, retrieved from his official website.

Flake’s yes came after he split with the Republican party and joined Senate Democrats last week during the Senate Judiciary Committee to request a weeklong FBI investigation on Kavanaugh to investigate the sexual assault allegations Dr. Christine Blasey Ford brought forward.

Kavanaugh will now be sworn in later today by Chief Justice John Roberts and Retired Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy and is expected to take his seat on the court as early as Tuesday, Oct. 9, a week after the court’s 2018-2019 term began.

Feature Image retrieved from Justice Kavanaugh Official Twitter account.

UPDATE: The feature image of this article was changed Sunday, Oct. 6, to show Kavanaugh being sworn in to the U.S. Supreme Court.