Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor speaks during a panel discussion at the winter meeting of the National Governors Association, Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor has told people close to her that she has no plans of stepping down before Donald Trump takes office, according to multiple reports, as calls have emerged on the left for her to do so in a bid to clamp Trump’s power.
“This is no time to lose her important voice on the court,” a source close to Sotomayor told the Wall Street Journal on Sunday. “She just turned 70 and takes better care of herself than anyone I know,” the source said.
Another person close to the justice, who spoke to CNN, said: “She’s in great health, and the court needs her now more than ever.” Sources also told ABC News that Sotomayor wasn’t planning on going anywhere.
Sotomayor, the most senior liberal member of the Supreme Court, has been receiving calls to step down immediately by Democrats in the days since Trump’s election win, with many believing it would be foolish to give Trump another opportunity to nominate a justice, should Sotomayor not make it through his second term for some reason.
“This would probably be a good day for Sotomayor to retire,” David Dayen, executive editor of American Prospect magazine, wrote on X after the election.
Reports about Sotomayor having type 1 diabetes, which she is publicly spoken about, have been making the rounds online, per the WSJ, and there has been an influx of stories shared about Justice Ruth Ginsburg’s death in 2020, which resulted in Trump nominating Justice Amy Coney Barrett.
At 70, Sotomayor is currently the third oldest Supreme Court justice followed by Samuel Alito, 74, and Clarence Thomas, 76. She was appointed by Barack Obama in 2009.
Ginsburg was 87-years-old when she died and suffering from various health problems, including treatment for cancerous lesions on her liver in July 2020 just months before her death, per reports. Sotomayor, meanwhile, is said to be perfectly healthy at the moment.
“I don’t think it’s the sensible approach,” Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday about the calls to resign.
Sanders, who is 83, said he had heard “a little bit” of talk from Democratic senators about the resignation push, but he wasn’t paying it any mind.
“No,” Sanders said when asked if Sotomayor should step down. “I don’t.”
Since justices are given lifetime appointments to the Supreme Court, the topic of resignation has become a popular one on both sides of the aisle. Republicans, for example, have also been reportedly discussing whether their aging justices should step down and give the party more secured votes in the country’s highest court once Trump is in office.
“Justice Sam Alito is gleefully packing up his chambers,” wrote legal analyst and Trump ally Mike Davis on X after the election.
Attempts by Law&Crime to reach Sotomayor for comment were unsuccessful Sunday.
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