U.S. Sen. Susan Collins will meet with Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson next week ahead of her nomination hearing to serve on the Supreme Court, the Maine senator’s office confirmed Thursday.
Collins is on the short list of Republicans who have indicated openness to voting for Jackson, a former public defender and current appeals court judge who would be the first black woman to serve on the high court.
The Maine senator said last week she found Jackson’s credentials “impressive” but cited a private meeting with Jackson as “most important” to her eventual decision. The planned meeting, scheduled for Tuesday afternoon, was first reported by the Washington Post.
Democrats have been courting Collins’ vote, with President Joe Biden calling her last week to inform her of Jackson’s nomination shortly before the information was made public. Collins was one of only three Republicans who voted to confirm Jackson to her current judgeship on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. She also previously voted to confirm three Supreme Court justices under former Democratic president Barack Obama.
Collins was a key player in several Supreme Court fights under former President Donald Trump. She voted to confirm Justice Brett Kavanaugh in 2018 despite opposition from reproductive rights groups, but voted against confirming Justice Amy Coney Barrett two years later, saying it was too close to a presidential election.