Justice Samuel Alito has made a decision about retirement: he’s not leaving, at least for now. The 2026 midterm blowout Republicans suffered. The Justice has been mulling retirement since his book tour, and National Public Radio even sent shockwaves through D.C. with a premature retirement article that led to an embarrassing backtrack and retraction. He vowed to stay until the end of this term (via Fox News):
Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito confirmed to Fox News that he has no plans to retire and is committed through at least the current term, which is set to end in late June.
Alito made the statement Thursday amid speculation about the future of the Supreme Court after a disastrous GOP performance in the midterm elections.
When the new congressional term begins in January, Democrats will be in firm control of the Senate, with predictions, including from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, that this will not change for at least six years. That would make it extremely difficult, if not impossible, for President Donald Trump to fill any potential vacancy with a conservative after this year.
After Justice Clarence Thomas, 78, Alito is the oldest member of the Supreme Court at 76 years old.
The catch is: how long can these two hold out? It’s quite possible, if not likely, that Republicans won’t regain control of the Senate until 2033, barring a catastrophic overreach by congressional Democrats. Not everyone is the late Justice John Paul Stevens, who retired at 90.
There is a murmur that the Senate is open to holding a lame-duck session to replace both Thomas and Alito, or at least one, but that requires a real leader among Senate Republicans, and there is none. No one can be trusted, and Thune will likely bungle it.