GOP’s losses will raise pressure on conservative Supreme Court justices to retire | Justin Jouvenal, (c) 2026 , The Washington Post - Fri, November 6, 2026 at 7:02 PM GMT+3 - 5 min read

The GOP's sweeping losses in the midterm elections Tuesday set up an unsettling possibility for the party: If it doesn't act now to confirm a new Supreme Court justice, it may not have another chance for years to come.

That prospect is likely to ramp up pressure on the court's two oldest conservatives - Justices Samuel A. Alito Jr., 76, and Clarence Thomas, 78 - to retire during the lame-duck period, while Republicans still have the votes to get a nominee confirmed by the Senate. The new Senate, in which Democrats will hold a majority, is seated on Jan. 3.

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https://washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/11/05/gops-losses-will-raise-pressure-conservative-supreme-court-justices-retire/