The Senate voted on Monday to confirm Whitney Hermandorfer to the Sixth United States Circuit Court of Appeals, marking President Donald Trump’s first judicial appointment since returning to office.

Hermandorfer previously served in the office of the Tennessee Attorney General. The strict party-line vote of forty-six Senators in favor and forty-two opposed reflects the partisan divide that has characterized judicial confirmations in recent years.

Her confirmation comes after Democrats, who controlled the Senate during the Biden presidency, confirmed 235 federal judges. During Trump’s first term, the Senate confirmed a nearly identical 234 judges.

Trump faces a different landscape this time around. Just forty-nine vacancies currently exist among the roughly 900 federal judgeships, a sharp contrast to his first term, when he inherited over 100 open positions from the Obama administration.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, a Republican from South Dakota, has signaled his commitment to moving Trump’s nominees through the confirmation process quickly, despite the fewer openings.

Hermandorfer has established herself as a defender of Trump’s policies. She notably supported efforts to end birthright citizenship, a position that has drawn fierce criticism from Democrats and progressive advocacy groups.

Her legal credentials include clerking for three Supreme Court justices, a detail that supporters emphasize when questioned about her qualifications. The Senate Judiciary Committee is set to vote on additional nominees in coming weeks.