Unsuccessful Nominations to the Supreme Court of the United States - wikipedia Unsuccessful Nominations to the Supreme Court of the United States This article is part of the series on the United States Supreme Court The Court Decisions Procedure History Court Building Current membership Chief Justice John Roberts Associate Justices Clarence Thomas Ruth Bader Ginsburg Stephen Breyer Samuel Alito Sonia Sotomayor Elena Kagan Neil Gorsuch 1 seat vacant Retired Associate Justices John Paul Stevens Sandra Day O'Connor Anthony Kennedy David Souter All members List of all justices by court by seat by time in office by education List of Chief Justices List of Associate Justices Specialty lists All nominations Unsuccessful nominations Nominations late in presidency Court demographics Justices who served in Congress Ideological leanings of justices Court functionaries Clerks Reporter of Decisions Marshal of the Court Supreme Court Police Other countries Law Portal The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest ranking judicial body in the United States. Established by Article III of the Constitution, the detailed structure of the Court was laid down by the 1st United States Congress in 1789. Congress specified the Court 's original and appellate jurisdiction, created 13 judicial districts, and fixed the initial size of the Supreme Court. The number of justices on the Supreme Court changed six times before settling at the present total of nine in 1869. A total of 113 justices have served on the Supreme Court since 1789 ; as of August 2018, there is one nomination before the Senate. Justices have life tenure, and so they serve until they die in office, resign or retire, or are impeached and removed from office. Justices are nominated by the president and then confirmed by the U.S. Senate. A nomination to the Court is considered to be official when the Senate receives a signed nomination letter from the president naming the nominee, which is then entered in the Senate 's record. There have been 37 unsuccessful nominations to the Supreme Court of the United States. Of these, 11 nominees were rejected in Senate roll - call votes, 11 were withdrawn by the president, and 15 lapsed at the end of a session of Congress. Six of these unsuccessful nominees were subsequently nominated and confirmed to other seats on the Court. Additionally, although confirmed, seven nominees either declined office or ( in one instance ) died before assuming office. Contents 1 George Washington 2 John Adams 3 James Madison 4 John Quincy Adams 5 Andrew Jackson 6 John Tyler 7 James K. Polk 8 Millard Fillmore 9 James Buchanan 10 Andrew Johnson 11 Ulysses S. Grant 12 Rutherford B. Hayes 13 Chester A. Arthur 14 Grover Cleveland 15 Warren Harding 16 Herbert Hoover 17 Dwight D. Eisenhower 18 Lyndon B. Johnson 19 Richard Nixon 20 Ronald Reagan 21 George W. Bush 22 Barack Obama 23 List of unsuccessful nominations 24 See also 25 References 26 Further reading George Washington Among the six original nominees to the Supreme Court, George Washington nominated Robert H. Harrison, who declined to serve. The seat remained empty until the confirmation of James Iredell in 1790. Washington nominated William Paterson for the Supreme Court on February 27, 1793. The nomination was withdrawn by the President the following day. Washington had realized that since the law establishing the positions within the Supreme Court had been passed during Paterson 's term as a Senator ( a post he had resigned in November 1790 after being elected Governor of New Jersey ) the nomination was a violation of Article I, Section 6 of the Constitution. Washington re-nominated Paterson to the Court on March 4, 1793, after Paterson 's term as Senator had expired, and Paterson was confirmed by the Senate. John Jay resigned as Chief Justice on June 29, 1795, after being elected Governor of New York. The subsequent nomination of John Rutledge as Chief Justice was rejected by a vote of 10 -- 14 on December 15, 1795. Rutledge 's strident and vocal opposition to the Jay Treaty may have been the main reason for his rejection. Because he had been a recess appointment, Rutledge served as Chief Justice for one term. Washington nominated Associate Justice William Cushing to replace him as Chief Justice, but Cushing declined the role. Washington then successfully appointed Oliver Ellsworth to serve as the next Chief Justice. John Adams After Oliver Ellsworth decided to resign from the position of Chief Justice, President John Adams sought to replace Ellsworth with John Jay, who had been the first Chief Justice. Jay was formally nominated, but turned down the position. Adams then successfully nominated his Secretary of State, John Marshall. James Madison When William Cushing died, James Madison nominated Levi Lincoln Sr. on January 2, 1811. Lincoln declined the nomination. Alexander Wolcott was then nominated, but was rejected by a vote of 9 -- 24 on February 13, 1811. After John Quincy Adams declined a nomination, Madison was finally successful in filling the seat with his appointment of Joseph Story. John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams nominated John J. Crittenden on December 18, 1828. The Senate postponed the vote on his confirmation, by a vote of 23 -- 17, on February 12, 1829. The Senate did not explicitly vote to `` postpone indefinitely '', but the resolution did have that effect. President Andrew Jackson instead filled the position with John McLean. Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson nominated Roger B. Taney on January 15, 1835, to be an Associate Justice. A resolution was passed by a Senate vote of 24 -- 21 on March 3, 1835, to postpone the nomination indefinitely. Jackson nominated Taney again on December 28, 1835. After the political composition of the Senate changed the next year, Taney was confirmed as Chief Justice March 15, 1836. In 1837, Jackson nominated William Smith and John Catron to newly created seats. Both were confirmed, but Smith declined to serve. Later that year, President Van Buren appointed John McKinley to fill the vacancy. John Tyler John Tyler experienced extreme difficulty in obtaining approval of his nominees due to his lack of political support in the Senate. Tyler took office in 1841 after the death of Whig President William Henry Harrison. Tyler had been Harrison 's running mate in the 1840 election, but Tyler clashed with the Congressional Whigs over issues such as the national bank, and these clashes extended to judicial nominees. John C. Spencer was nominated on January 9, 1844, and his nomination was defeated by a vote of 21 -- 26 on January 31, 1844. Reuben H. Walworth was nominated on March 13, 1844, and a resolution to table the nomination passed on a 27 -- 20 vote on June 15, 1844. The nomination was withdrawn from the Senate on June 17, 1844. Edward King was nominated on June 5, 1844. A resolution to table the nomination passed by a vote of 29 -- 18 on June 15, 1844. No other action was taken on this nomination. The same day that Walworth 's nomination was withdrawn, Spencer was re-submitted, but there is no record of debate and a letter from the President withdrawing the nomination was received on the same day. Walworth was then re-nominated later that same day, but the motion to act on the nomination in the Senate was objected to, and no further action was taken. Walworth and King were re-nominated on December 10, 1844, but both nominations were tabled on January 21, 1845. Walworth 's nomination was withdrawn on February 6, 1845, and King 's two days later. John M. Read was nominated on February 8, 1845, and there was a motion to consider the nomination in the Senate on January 21, 1845, but the motion was unsuccessful and no other action was taken. On February 14, 1845, the Senate voted to confirm Samuel Nelson. James K. Polk After Henry Baldwin 's death in 1844, James K. Polk nominated James Buchanan, who declined the nomination. Polk then nominated George W. Woodward, but the Senate rejected him by a vote of 20 -- 29. Baldwin was finally replaced by Robert Cooper Grier in 1846. Millard Fillmore Millard Fillmore made three nominations to replace John McKinley, nominating Edward A. Bradford, George Edmund Badger, and William C. Micou, but the Senate did not take action on any of the nominees. President Franklin Pierce filled the vacancy with John Archibald Campbell. James Buchanan James Buchanan nominated Jeremiah S. Black to the court in 1861 to replace Peter Vivian Daniel. The Senate voted 25 -- 26 against confirming him. President Lincoln filled the seat with Samuel Freeman Miller in 1862. Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson took office after the death of Republican President Abraham Lincoln in 1865. Johnson, a former Democrat, had been Lincoln 's running mate on the National Union ticket of 1864, but Johnson disagreed with Congressional Republicans on several issues, including judicial nominees. Two justices died in office during Johnson 's administration, James Moore Wayne and John Catron. Congress, however, passed the Judicial Circuits Act of 1866, which provided for a gradual elimination of seats until only seven were left. Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase had urged for this reduction in the hopes that it would result in an increase of the justices ' salaries, which, ironically, did not happen until Congress restored the size of the court to nine members in 1871. Johnson had nominated Henry Stanbery to be an Associate Justice, but due to the reduction of seats, this nomination was nullified. Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant nominated Ebenezer R. Hoar to a new seat on the court. The Senate rejected this nomination by a vote of 24 -- 33. Grant successfully nominated Joseph Bradley for the seat. Grant also nominated Edwin M. Stanton, former Attorney General and Secretary of War to the court. The nomination was eventually confirmed, but Stanton died before he was commissioned. Grant then successfully nominated William Strong. Grant nominated George Henry Williams to be Chief Justice of the United States in 1873, but he later withdrew from consideration. Prior to withdrawal of consideration, the Senate Judiciary Committee declined to recommend confirmation to the entire Senate. Grant then nominated Caleb Cushing for Chief Justice on January 9, 1874, but despite Cushing 's great learning and eminence at the bar, his anti-war record and the feeling of distrust experienced by many members of the U.S. Senate on account of his inconsistency, aroused such vigorous opposition that his nomination was withdrawn on January 13, 1874. Grant was successful with his third nomination of Morrison Waite. Rutherford B. Hayes Early in 1881, President Rutherford B. Hayes nominated Thomas Stanley Matthews for the position of Associate Justice. Matthews was a controversial nominee due to his close ties to the railroad industry, and as the nomination came near the end of Hayes 's term, the Senate did not act on it. However, upon succeeding Hayes, incoming President James A. Garfield ( who, like Hayes, was a Republican ) renominated Matthews, and the Senate confirmed him by a vote of 24 to 23, the narrowest confirmation for a successful U.S. Supreme Court nominee in history. He served on the Court until his death in 1889. Chester a Arthur In 1882, Chester A. Arthur nominated Roscoe Conkling to serve as an Associate Justice after Ward Hunt resigned. Conkling was confirmed, and then declined the position. After Conkling declined, Arthur nominated George F. Edmunds, who twice declined to serve. Arthur then nominated Samuel Blatchford, who was confirmed and accepted. Grover Cleveland Associate Justice Samuel Blatchford died in 1893, during the second term of Grover Cleveland. This seat was traditionally held by a New Yorker. Cleveland 's first two nominees were not confirmed by the Senate ; the nomination of William Hornblower was rejected by the Senate by a vote of 24 -- 30 on January 15, 1894. Cleveland 's follow - up nominee Wheeler Hazard Peckham, was also rejected by the Senate, 32 -- 41, on February 16, 1894. By the tradition of Senatorial courtesy, other Senators generally deferred to a nominee 's home state senators when evaluating a presidential nomination. The Senators from New York were Edward Murphy, Jr. and David B. Hill ; Hill objected to Cleveland 's nominations, and most other Senators supported Hill. Hill was a rival of Cleveland 's who had lost the Democratic nomination for President to him in 1892. Cleveland finally overcame Hill 's opposition by nominating Edward Douglass White of Louisiana. White was a sitting Senator, and Senatorial courtesy dictated that the Senate not reject one of its own. White 's nomination was approved ; he served as an Associate Justice until 1910, and as Chief Justice until his death in 1921. Warren Harding Main article : Warren G. Harding Supreme Court candidates President Warren G. Harding nominated Pierce Butler to the Supreme Court in 1922, but the Senate refused to consider his nomination, in part due to Butler 's advocacy for railroad interests. However, Harding re-submitted the nomination later in the year, and Butler was confirmed in a 61 -- 8 vote. Herbert Hoover Main article : Herbert Hoover Supreme Court candidates On May 7, 1930, Herbert Hoover 's nomination of Appellate Judge John J. Parker for the Supreme Court was rejected by a vote of 39 -- 41. Parker was nominated to replace Edward Terry Sanford. The American Federation of Labor opposed Parker for his rulings that were favorable towards yellow dog contracts and the NAACP opposed Parker due to concerns about Parker 's racial views. Hoover attempted to appeal to Southern Democratic Senators to vote for Parker, who was from North Carolina, but Hoover was unable to win enough Democratic votes to make up for Republican defections. Hoover 's second nominee, Owen J. Roberts, was confirmed by the Senate. Dwight D. Eisenhower Main article : Dwight D. Eisenhower Supreme Court candidates President Dwight D. Eisenhower nominated John Marshall Harlan II in 1954, but his nomination was not reported out of the judiciary committee, in part due to opposition to his purported `` ultra-liberal '' views. Eisenhower re-nominated Harlan in 1955, and the Senate confirmed him in a 71 -- 11 vote. Lyndon B. Johnson Main article : Lyndon B. Johnson Supreme Court candidates Lyndon B. Johnson nominated Abe Fortas, then an associate justice, for Chief Justice. Fortas would have succeeded Earl Warren, who had decided to retire. Controversy ensued regarding Fortas 's extrajudicial activities, and at Fortas 's request, Johnson withdrew the nomination prior to a vote of the full Senate. Fortas 's nomination was also opposed by many senators who opposed the rulings of the Warren Court. President Nixon instead filled the vacancy caused by Warren 's retirement with Warren Burger. When Johnson nominated Fortas, he also nominated Homer Thornberry to fill Fortas ' seat. Since Fortas withdrew his name from the Chief Justice nomination, but maintained his seat as an Associate Justice ( with Earl Warren continuing as Chief Justice ), the nomination of Thornberry was void. He was never voted on by the Senate. Richard Nixon Main article : Richard Nixon Supreme Court candidates When Abe Fortas resigned in 1969 because of a scandal separate from his Chief Justice bid, Richard Nixon nominated Clement Haynsworth, a Southern jurist. His nomination was rejected by the Senate by a vote of 45 -- 55 on November 21, 1969, due to concerns about Haynsworth 's civil rights record and perceived ethical lapses. In response, Nixon nominated G. Harrold Carswell, a Southerner with a history of supporting segregation and opposing women 's rights. The Senate rejected his nomination 45 to 51 on April 8, 1970, following much pressure from the Civil Rights and Feminist movements. Nixon 's third nominee for the Fortas vacancy was Harry Blackmun, who was confirmed by the Senate with no opposition on May 17, 1970. Nixon was soon faced with two more Supreme Court vacancies when John Harlan and Hugo Black retired in the fall of 1971. Nixon considered nominating Arkansas lawyer Hershel Friday and California intermediate appellate judge Mildred Lillie to the high court. By tradition at the time, potential Supreme Court nominees were first disclosed to the American Bar Association 's standing committee on the federal judiciary. When it became apparent that this 12 - member committee would find that both were unqualified, Nixon passed over Friday and Lillie, and nominated Lewis Powell and William Rehnquist. Powell was confirmed by an 89 -- 1 vote, and Rehnquist was confirmed 68 -- 22. Ronald Reagan Main article : Robert Bork Supreme Court nomination When Lewis Powell retired in July 1987, Ronald Reagan nominated Robert Bork. Bork was a member of the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia at the time and known as a proponent of constitutional originalism. Bork lost confirmation by a Senate vote of 42 to 58, largely due to Bork 's extreme conservative opinions on constitutional issues and his role in the Nixon Saturday Night Massacre. Reagan then announced his intention to nominate Douglas H. Ginsburg to the court. Before Ginsburg could be officially nominated, he withdrew himself from consideration under heavy pressure after revealing that he had smoked marijuana with his students while a professor at Harvard Law School. Reagan then nominated Anthony Kennedy, who was confirmed by a Senate vote of 97 -- 0. George W. Bush Main article : Harriet Miers Supreme Court nomination In October 2005, George W. Bush nominated Harriet Miers, a corporate attorney from Texas who had served as Bush 's private attorney and as White House Counsel, as an Associate Justice to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Miers was widely perceived as unqualified for the position, and it later emerged that she had allowed her law license to lapse for a time. The nomination was immediately attacked by politicians and commentators from across the political spectrum. At Miers 's request, Bush withdrew the nomination on October 27, ostensibly to avoid violating executive privilege by disclosing details of her work at the White House. Four days later, Bush nominated Samuel Alito to the seat. Alito was confirmed by a vote of 58 -- 42 on January 31, 2006. Barack Obama Main article : Merrick Garland Supreme Court nomination In February 2016, Associate Justice Antonin Scalia died. The following month, President Barack Obama nominated D.C. Circuit Judge Merrick Garland to replace Scalia. However, the Senate was controlled by the Republican Party, which argued that the next president should instead appoint Scalia 's successor. Senate Republicans refused to hold hearings on Garland, and Garland 's nomination remained before the Senate longer than any other Supreme Court nomination. Garland 's nomination expired with the end of the 114th United States Congress. The vacancy caused by Scalia 's death remained unfilled for 422 days, making it just the second Supreme Court vacancy since the end of the Civil War to remain unfilled for more than one year. On January 31, 2017, President Donald Trump nominated federal appeals court Judge Neil Gorsuch to replace Justice Scalia. Justice Gorsuch was sworn in on April 10, 2017, after being confirmed by a vote of 54 -- 45. List of unsuccessful Nominations Following is a complete list of the 30 persons officially nominated to the Supreme Court ( not including current pending nominee Brett Kavanaugh ), who for various reasons never served on the Court. Supreme Court nominees who never served on the Court Nominee Year Nominated by Outcome Robert Harrison 1789 Washington Declined Levi Lincoln 1811 Madison Declined Alexander Wolcott 1811 Madison Rejected, 9 -- 24 John Quincy Adams 1811 Madison Declined John J. Crittenden 1828 J.Q. Adams Postponed William Smith 1837 Jackson Declined John C. Spencer 1844 Tyler Rejected, 21 -- 26 Reuben H. Walworth 1844 Tyler Withdrawn Edward King 1845 Tyler Withdrawn John M. Read 1845 Tyler No Action George W. Woodward 1845 Polk Rejected, 20 -- 29 Edward A. Bradford 1852 Fillmore No Action George E. Badger 1853 Fillmore Postponed William C. Micou 1853 Fillmore No Action Jeremiah S. Black 1861 Buchanan Rejected, 25 -- 26 Henry Stanbery 1866 A. Johnson Nullified Ebenezer R. Hoar 1869 Grant Rejected, 24 -- 33 Edwin Stanton 1869 Grant George Henry Williams 1873 Grant Postponed Caleb Cushing 1874 Grant Withdrawn Roscoe Conkling 1882 Arthur Declined William B. Hornblower 1893 Cleveland Rejected, 24 -- 30 Wheeler Hazard Peckham 1894 Cleveland Rejected, 32 -- 41 John J. Parker 1930 Hoover Rejected, 39 -- 41 Homer Thornberry 1968 L.B. Johnson Nullified Clement Haynsworth 1969 Nixon Rejected, 45 -- 55 G. Harrold Carswell 1970 Nixon Rejected, 45 -- 51 Robert H. Bork Reagan Rejected, 42 -- 58 Harriet Miers 2005 G.W. Bush Withdrawn Merrick Garland 2016 Obama No Action See also Unsuccessful nominations to the Cabinet of the United States References Jump up ^ `` The Court as an Institution ''. supremecourt.gov. Washington, D.C. : Supreme Court of the United States. Retrieved August 8, 2018. Jump up ^ McMillion, Barry J. ; Rutkus, Denis Steven ( July 6, 2018 ). `` Supreme Court Nominations, 1789 to 2017 : Actions by the Senate, the Judiciary Committee, and the President '' ( PDF ). Washington, D.C. : Congressional Research Service. Retrieved August 8, 2018. Jump up ^ Fore, Samuel K. `` Robert Hanson Harrison ''. Mount Vernon, Virginia : Mount Vernon Ladies ' Association. Retrieved August 8, 2018. ^ Jump up to : Timothy L. Hall ( January 1, 2001 ). Supreme Court Justices : A Biographical Dictionary. Infobase Publishing. pp. 30 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4381 - 0817 - 9. Jump up ^ Melvin Urofsky ; Emeritus Professor of History and Public Policy Melvin Urofsky ( November 17, 2015 ). The Supreme Court Justices : A Biographical Dictionary. Routledge. pp. 389 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 136 - 74747 - 2. ^ Jump up to : `` U.S. Senate : Supreme Court Nominations : 1789 -- Present ''. senate.gov. Washington, D.C. : United States Senate. Retrieved August 2, 2018. Jump up ^ Schwartz, Bernard ( 1993 ). A History of the Supreme Court. New York : Oxford University Press. pp. 32 -- 34. ^ Jump up to : Richard S. Conley ( December 14, 2015 ). Historical Dictionary of the U.S. Presidency. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. pp. 419 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4422 - 5765 - 8. Jump up ^ Richard S. Beth ( December 2009 ). Supreme Court Nominations : Senate Floor Procedure and Practice, 1789 - 2009. DIANE Publishing. pp. 5 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4379 - 1994 - 3. ^ Jump up to : Paul Finkelman ( January 15, 2014 ). The Supreme Court : Controversies, Cases, and Characters from John Jay to John Roberts ( 4 Volumes ) : Controversies, Cases, and Characters from John Jay to John Roberts. ABC - CLIO. pp. 191 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 61069 - 395 - 0. ^ Jump up to : Richard S. Beth ( December 2009 ). Supreme Court Nominations : Senate Floor Procedure and Practice, 1789 - 2009. DIANE Publishing. pp. 6 -- 7. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4379 - 1994 - 3. ^ Jump up to : CQ Press ( September 25, 2012 ). Guide to Congress. SAGE Publications. pp. 350 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4522 - 3532 - 5. Jump up ^ CQ Press ( October 6, 2009 ). American Political Leaders 1789 - 2009. SAGE Publications. pp. 51 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4522 - 6726 - 5. Jump up ^ Alfredo Narváez Medécigo ( November 21, 2015 ). Rule of Law and Fundamental Rights : Critical Comparative Analysis of Constitutional Review in the United States, Germany and Mexico. Springer. pp. 102 --. ISBN 978 - 3 - 319 - 24562 - 1. Jump up ^ Charles Gardner Geyh ( March 2, 2006 ). When Courts and Congress Collide : The Struggle for Control of America 's Judicial System. University of Michigan Press. pp. 194 --. ISBN 0 - 472 - 09922 - 1. ^ Jump up to : Ulysses Simpson Grant ; John Y. Simon ( December 1994 ). November 1, 1869 - October 31, 1870. SIU Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 8093 - 1965 - 7. Jump up ^ Members of the Supreme Court of the United States, Official list on SCOTUS website Jump up ^ Department of Justice biography : George Henry Williams Jump up ^ Corning, Howard M. Dictionary of Oregon History. Binfords & Mort Publishing, 1956. Jump up ^ United States Congressional serial set. US Government Printing Office. 1895. pp. 259 --. ^ Jump up to : Hogue, Henry B. `` Supreme Court Nominations Not Confirmed, 1789 - August 2010 '' ( PDF ). Congressional Research Service. Federation of American Scientists. Retrieved March 22, 2016. Jump up ^ Stanley Matthews biography at Sixth Circuit Archived August 27, 2009, at the Wayback Machine. United States Court of Appeals. Jump up ^ Timothy L. Hall ( January 1, 2001 ). Supreme Court Justices : A Biographical Dictionary. Infobase Publishing. pp. 182 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4381 - 0817 - 9. Jump up ^ `` President Arthur has appointed ex-Senator Roscoe Conkling to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court ''. Donaldsonville Chief. Donaldsonville, LA. February 25, 1882. p. 2. ( Subscription required ( help ) ). Jump up ^ `` The Senate has confirmed the following nominations ''. Valley Falls New Era. Valley Falls, KS. March 11, 1882. p. 2. ( Subscription required ( help ) ). Jump up ^ `` Blatchford Nominated : Mr. Conkling 's Letter ''. Topeka Daily Capital. Topeka, KS. March 14, 1882. p. 1. ( Subscription required ( help ) ). Jump up ^ `` News by Telegraph : George F. Edmunds Letter of Refusal ; Edmunds ' Second Refusal ''. Las Vegas Gazette. Las Vegas, NM. March 14, 1882. p. 1. ( Subscription required ( help ) ). Jump up ^ `` Judge Samuel Blatchford : The New Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States ''. Leavenworth Times. Leavenworth, KS. March 22, 1882. p. 4. ( Subscription required ( help ) ). Jump up ^ `` Justice Blatchford Dead ''. Philadelphia Times. Philadelphia, PA. July 8, 1893. p. 4. ( Subscription required ( help ) ). Jump up ^ Supreme Court Nominations : Presidential Nomination, the Judiciary Committee, Proper Scope of Questioning Nominees, Senate Consideration, Cloture, and the Use of the Filibuster. TheCapitol.Net : Alexandria, VA. 2010. p. 88. ISBN 978 - 1 - 58733 - 158 - 9. Jump up ^ `` The Buffalo Evening Times Remarks ''. Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, NY. January 28, 1894. p. 6. ( Subscription required ( help ) ). Jump up ^ `` Hornblower is Out ; Majority of the Senate Committee Against Confirmation ''. Dakota Farmers ' Leader. Canton, SD. January 12, 1894. p. 2. ( Subscription required ( help ) ). Jump up ^ `` Cleveland and Stevenson : The Ticket Nominated by the National Democratic Convention at Chicago ''. Weekly Star. Plymouth, PA. June 30, 1892. p. 6. ( Subscription required ( help ) ). Jump up ^ `` Justice White : Cleveland Springs a Surprise ''. San Francisco Call. San Francisco, CA. February 20, 1894. p. 1. ( Subscription required ( help ) ). Jump up ^ Pratt, Walter F. The Supreme Court Under Edward Douglass White, 1910 - 1921. Columbia, SC : University of South Carolina Press. p. 17. ISBN 978 - 1 - 57003 - 309 - 4. Jump up ^ `` Today Took Office : Edward Douglass White is now Chief Justice ''. Evening Telegram. Garden City, KS. December 19, 1910. p. 4. ( Subscription required ( help ) ). Jump up ^ `` Chief Justice Dead ; Served 21 Years on Supreme Bench ''. Evening News Journal. Wilmington, DE. May 19, 1921. p. 1. ( Subscription required ( help ) ). Jump up ^ Kenneth W. Goings ( 1990 ). The `` Naacp Comes of Age '' : The Defeat of Judge John J. Parker. Indiana University Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 253 - 32585 - 3. ^ Jump up to : Watson Jr., Richard L. ( September 1963 ). `` The Defeat of Judge Parker : A Study in Pressure Groups and Politics ''. The Mississippi Valley Historical Review. 50 ( 2 ) : 213 -- 234. JSTOR 1902754. Jump up ^ John Massaro ( 1990 ). Supremely Political : The Role of Ideology and Presidential Management in Unsuccessful Supreme Court Nominations. SUNY Press. pp. 36 --. ISBN 978 - 0 - 7914 - 0301 - 3. Jump up ^ George C. Edwards, III ; Stephen J. Wayne ( July 3, 2013 ). Presidential Leadership : Politics and Policy Making. Cengage Learning. pp. 384 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 285 - 96118 - 7. Jump up ^ Archie Vernon Huff ( 1995 ). Greenville : The History of the City and County in the South Carolina Piedmont. Univ of South Carolina Press. pp. 410 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 57003 - 045 - 1. Jump up ^ John W. Dean ( February 1, 2002 ). The Rehnquist Choice : The Untold Story of the Nixon Appointment That Redefined the Supreme Court. Simon and Schuster. pp. 19 --. ISBN 978 - 0 - 7432 - 2979 - 1. Jump up ^ Anna R. Hayes ( June 1, 2009 ). Without Precedent : The Life of Susie Marshall Sharp. Univ of North Carolina Press. pp. 316 --. ISBN 978 - 0 - 8078 - 8781 - 3. Jump up ^ Norman Vieira ; Leonard Gross ( 1998 ). Supreme Court Appointments : Judge Bork and the Politicization of Senate Confirmations. SIU Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 8093 - 2204 - 6. Jump up ^ Martin A. Lee ( August 13, 2013 ). Smoke Signals : A Social History of Marijuana - Medical, Recreational and Scientific. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4391 - 0261 - 9. Jump up ^ Andrew Wroe ; Jon Herbert ( November 18, 2009 ). Assessing the George W. Bush Presidency : A Tale of Two Terms. Edinburgh University Press. pp. 47 --. ISBN 978 - 0 - 7486 - 3149 - 0. Jump up ^ `` Where Republican Senators Stand on the Supreme Court Nomination '', New York Times, March 29, 2016, retrieved March 31, 2016 Jump up ^ Hurley, Lawrence ( July 19, 2016 ). `` Supreme Court nominee out in cold as election heats up ''. Reuters. Retrieved July 19, 2016. Jump up ^ Jess Bravin, President Obama 's Supreme Court Nomination of Merrick Garland Expires, Wall Street Journal ( January 3, 2017 ). Jump up ^ DeSilver, Drew ( 26 February 2017 ). `` Long Supreme Court vacancies used to be more common ''. Gallup. Retrieved 20 March 2017. Further reading Supreme Court Nominations Not Confirmed, 1789 -- 2004 Beth, Richard S, Supreme Court Nominations : Senate Floor Procedure and Practice, 1789 -- 2009. DIANE Publishing, 2009. Jacobstein, J. Myron ; Mersky, Roy M. ( 1993 ). The Rejected : Sketches of the 26 Men Nominated for the Supreme Court but Not Confirmed by the Senate. Toucan Valley. ISBN 978 - 0963401748. Nominations to the Supreme Court of the United States Nomination articles Robert Bork Clarence Thomas John Roberts Harriet Miers Samuel Alito Sonia Sotomayor Elena Kagan Merrick Garland Neil Gorsuch Brett Kavanaugh Lists of nominations All nominations Successful nominations Unsuccessful nominations Nominations late in presidency Supreme Court of the United States The Court Lists of cases Procedures Supreme Court Building Court demographics Ideological leanings Appointment and confirmation Current members Chief Justice : John Roberts Associate Justices : Clarence Thomas Ruth Bader Ginsburg Stephen Breyer Samuel Alito Sonia Sotomayor Elena Kagan Neil Gorsuch Current nominations For Associate Justice : Brett Kavanaugh Retired Justices John Paul Stevens Sandra Day O'Connor Anthony Kennedy David Souter History Jay Court ( 1789 -- 1795 ) Rutledge Court ( 1795 ) Ellsworth Court ( 1796 -- 1800 ) Marshall Court ( 1801 -- 1835 ) Taney Court ( 1836 -- 1864 ) Chase Court ( 1864 -- 1873 ) Waite Court ( 1874 -- 1888 ) Fuller Court ( 1888 -- 1910 ) White Court ( 1910 -- 1921 ) Taft Court ( 1921 -- 1930 ) Hughes Court ( 1930 -- 1941 ) Stone Court ( 1941 -- 1946 ) Vinson Court ( 1946 -- 1953 ) Warren Court ( 1953 -- 1969 ) Burger Court ( 1969 -- 1986 ) Rehnquist Court ( 1986 -- 2005 ) Roberts Court ( 2005 -- present ) Lists of justices and nominees Chief justices Associate justices All justices court seat education time in office timelines Justices who served in Congress All nominations Unsuccessful nominations Nominations near end of presidency Statutes affecting Court size Judiciary Act of 1789 Judiciary Act of 1801 Judiciary Act of 1802 Seventh Circuit Act of 1807 Eighth and Ninth Circuits Act of 1837 Tenth Circuit Act of 1863 Judicial Circuits Act of 1866 Judiciary Act of 1869 Court functionaries Clerk Marshal Supreme Court Police Reporter of Decisions Lists of law clerks Chief Justice Seat 1 Seat 2 Seat 3 Seat 4 Seat 6 Seat 8 Seat 9 Seat 10 All Former locations Old City Hall, Philadelphia Old Supreme Court Chamber, U.S. Capitol Old Senate Chamber, U.S. Capitol Related United States Solicitor General United States Reports Lawyers ' Edition Amicus curiae Article III, U.S. Constitution Original jurisdiction Burial places of justices The Court in fiction Other countries Law Portal Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Unsuccessful_nominations_to_the_Supreme_Court_of_the_United_States&oldid=856138782 '' Categories : Unsuccessful nominees to the United States Supreme Court Supreme Court of the United States people Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links Pages containing links to subscription - only content CS1 : Julian -- Gregorian uncertainty Use mdy dates from November 2016 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Add links This page was last edited on 23 August 2018, at 04 : 22 ( UTC ). 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Question: who was the last supreme court nominee to be rejected
Answer: Robert H. Bork