Amy Coney Barrett has been sworn in as a justice of the US Supreme Court after the Senate confirmed her appointment yesterday evening (26 October).
President Donald Trump’s decision to nominate the right-wing judge has swung the court decisively to the right. Conservatives now have a six-three majority on the bench.
Some presidents don’t get to nominate a Supreme Court justice during their term. However Trump has now nominated three, having previously selected Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh.
Meanwhile many fear Barrett won’t just change the balance of the court but also undermine the legacy of her predecessor – the liberal champion Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died in September.