The 51-year-old judge once clerked for Justice Stephen G. Breyer, whose seat she would fill at the Supreme Court. Breyer formally announced his upcoming retirement in January, and plans to leave once the court enters summer recess.
Jackson's nomination sets up a coming battle in the U.S. Senate, where she is likely to face opposition from conservative and pro-life lawmakers.
Kelly Shackelford, president of First Liberty Institute, a legal organization that defends religious freedom, commented that "In nominating Ketanji Brown Jackson, President Biden is selecting a judicial activist for the Supreme Court. Her record from the beginning of her career shows hostility to religious liberty, free speech, and other constitutional rights. The American people do not want a liberal extremist on the Supreme Court. If confirmed, Judge Jackson’s judicial activism will place the constitutional rights of all Americans in jeopardy."
Born in Washington, D.C., Jackson grew up in Miami. She earned both her undergraduate degree and law degree at Harvard, before working as a federal public defender. Her resume includes serving as vice chair and commissioner on the U.S. Sentencing Commission.
Biden elevated Jackson to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit last year. She first became a federal judge in 2013, serving the federal district court in D.C. as a President Barack Obama appointee.
Jackson lives in Washington, D.C., with her husband Patrick and their two daughters. Jackson’s father worked as an attorney for the county school board while her mother worked as a high school principal. Her younger brother served in the U.S. Army, including in Iraq and Egypt, before becoming a lawyer. Former Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan is also a relative by marriage.