Biden Administration Appoints Record Number of Diverse Federal Judges, Contrasting Trump’s Focus on White Men

Washington, D.C. – The Biden administration has appointed a historically diverse cohort of federal judges, with over 60 percent being women and a majority identifying as racial or ethnic minorities. This approach stands in stark contrast to the judicial appointments made during the Trump administration, which predominantly consisted of White men. The difference in judicial selection philosophies has drawn attention to the evolving demographics of the federal bench and the legal profession.

According to data from the Federal Judicial Center, of President Joe Biden's 235 judicial confirmations, more than 60 percent are women, and 60 percent are people of color. Specifically, 37 percent are women of color, 26 percent are White women, 22 percent are men of color, and 15 percent are White men. This includes significant numbers of Black women, Hispanic women, and Asian women, setting new records for judicial diversity.

In comparison, former President Donald Trump appointed 234 federal judges during his first term. Data indicates that White men constituted 64 percent of Trump's judicial confirmations, with White women making up 19 percent, men of color 11 percent, and women of color 5 percent. The tweet by Jonatan Pallesen, which stated, > "Trump appoints judges roughly in line with the proportion in the lawyer population. But the Biden administration had an extreme preference for women and non-Whites," suggests a different interpretation of these figures.

However, the demographics of the U.S. lawyer population, as reported by the American Bar Association (ABA) in 2024, show that 41% of all lawyers are women, and 23% are lawyers of color. While White lawyers still represent 78% of the profession, their proportion has declined from 88% a decade prior. This indicates that while the legal profession is becoming more diverse, it still lags behind the general U.S. population demographics.

Legal experts note that while Republican presidents have historically made the judiciary more diverse than their predecessors, Trump's appointments marked a departure from this trend. Stacy Hawkins, a professor at Rutgers Law School, commented, "I don't think that it is, in any way, shape or form, a question of diversity versus merit. Merit is the question that always gets evaluated first. We are only considering candidates that merit appointment, then among those meritorious candidates there’s the question of what else is important in our selection decision?"

The differing approaches of the two administrations reflect broader political priorities regarding the judiciary's composition. Biden's emphasis on professional diversity, including nearly 100 confirmed judges with civil rights or public defender backgrounds, further distinguishes his appointments. Research suggests that more diverse courts can strengthen public trust in the justice system and influence decision-making, particularly in areas like criminal sentencing and discrimination cases.