The appointment of federal judges for United States federal courts is done via nomination by the President of the United States and confirmation by the United States Senate. The tables below provide the composition of all Article III courts which include the Supreme Court and the Courts of Appeals at the end of each four year presidential term, as well as the current compositions of the District Courts and the Court of International Trade, categorizing the judges by the presidential term during which they were first appointed to their seats. As of June 30, 2022, of the 9 justices of the Supreme Court, 6 were appointed by a Republican president, and 3 were appointed by a Democratic president. As of September 16, 2024, of the 179 Courts of Appeals judges, 89 were appointed by Republican presidents, and 89 by Democratic presidents. Out of the 13 federal appeals courts, Democratic appointees have a majority on 7 courts, whereas Republican appointees have a majority on 6 courts. As of September 18, 2024, of the 680 district court judges, 370 were appointed by Democratic presidents compared to 267 by Republican ones. Within the individual circuit jurisdictions, Democratic presidents have appointed majorities in 8 circuits while Republican presidents have appointed a majority in 4 circuits. The party of the president who appointed a judge is generally a consistent indicator of that judge's judicial philosophy and place on the political spectrum, especially in modern times, although there are cases where judges stray from their appointers. Federal judges often strategically time their retirement so as to give the president of the same party that first appointed them an opportunity to nominate the successor.

Acronym key

Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of the United States was established by the Constitution of the United States. Originally, the Judiciary Act of 1789 set the number of justices at six. However, as the nation's boundaries grew across the continent and as Supreme Court justices in those days had to ride the circuit, an arduous process requiring long travel on horseback or carriage over harsh terrain that resulted in months-long extended stays away from home, Congress added justices to correspond with the growth: seven in 1807, nine in 1837, and ten in 1863. The Judicial Circuits Act of 1866 then set the number to gradually be reduced to seven through the retirement or death of current associate justices. The court was down to eight when the Judiciary Act of 1869 restored the number to nine.

Courts of appeals

The United States courts of appeals were established by the Judiciary Act of 1891 as "United States circuit courts of appeals" (the name was changed to its current form in 1948). The act authorized 19 appellate judgeships in 9 circuits. Since then, the number of authorized appellate judgeships has increased to 179.

Summary of 13 circuits combined

Partisan mix of the circuit courts

First Circuit

Second Circuit

Third Circuit

Fourth Circuit

Fifth Circuit

Sixth Circuit

Seventh Circuit

Eighth Circuit

Ninth Circuit

Tenth Circuit

Eleventh Circuit

D.C. Circuit

Federal Circuit

District courts

Summary of 91 district courts

Partisan mix of the district courts

District courts in the First Circuit

District courts in the Second Circuit

District courts in the Third Circuit

District courts in the Fourth Circuit

District courts in the Fifth Circuit

District courts in the Sixth Circuit

Note: Judge Claria Horn Boom (Trump appointee) currently serves both the Eastern & Western Districts of Kentucky

District courts in the Seventh Circuit

District courts in the Eighth Circuit

Note: Currently there is a vacant seat that serves both the Eastern & Western Districts of Missouri. Judge Brian Wimes (Obama appointee) also currently serves in both the Eastern & Western Districts of Missouri.

District courts in the Ninth Circuit

District courts in the Tenth Circuit

Note: Judge John Heil III (Trump appointee) currently serves on the Eastern, Northern, & Western Districts of Oklahoma

District courts in the Eleventh Circuit

District court in the D.C. Circuit

United States Court of International Trade

The United States Court of International Trade is an Article III court, with full powers in law and equity, established by the Customs Court Act of 1980 to replace the United States Customs Court.