The Senate on Oct. 28 confirmed Elizabeth Prelogar to be Solicitor General of the United States, marking the second time ever that a woman has held the position through Senate confirmation.
Prelogar, who was nominated by President Joe Biden in August, was confirmed in a 53-36 vote, and will now supervise and conduct government litigation in the Supreme Court.
The Idaho native has served as an acting U.S. solicitor general since January but had to step down in August to go through the official and lawful confirmation process. She has been working since then in the Justice Department’s office of legal counsel.
She previously served as a member of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation team probing Russia’s role in the 2016 presidential election.
Prelogar was backed by previous solicitors general from both parties but faced pushback from some Republicans after Biden switched a number of Trump-era legal positions at the high court, USA Today reported.
The confirmation comes just days before the Supreme court is set to hear two major abortion and gun rights cases.
Prelogar is thought to officially start in the position Monday when the Biden administration is expected to make its case before the high court challenging the new Texas abortion law, The Washington Post reported.
Neal Katyal, a former acting solicitor general, said he was “excited” to see Prelogar has been confirmed and hope she argues against the new Texas abortion law, which bans all abortions after six weeks of pregnancy.
“I really hope she argues US v. Texas (the abortion case) on Monday. It’s tight preparation time, but if anyone can do it, it’s her,” he added.
The National Association for Gun Rights was the only Second Amendment group to oppose the nomination of Prelogar to the office of Solicitor General. Prelogar, a Harvard Law School graduate, has represented radical gun control group ‘Everytown’ and clerked for anti-gun Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died in 2020, and Elena Kagan.
“Unfortunately, six Republican Senators decided to vote for Prelogar during cloture and the final vote,” said Dudley Brown, President of the National Association for Gun Rights. “It’s quite sad that they couldn’t stand up for gun rights on such a crucial vote—especially since the Supreme Court will be hearing a major gun rights case next month.”
Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) crossed the aisle to confirm Prelogar.
The solicitor general argues the government’s position on cases before the Supreme Court.
“Pro-gun Americans should be gravely disappointed that these Republicans turned their back on the Second Amendment and voted for a person who will surely argue against our right to keep and bear arms when she stands before the Court,” said Brown. “These supposed pro-gun Senators must not truly understand the full weight of their office, or else they’d know just how foolish their votes really were.”
The National Association for Gun Rights is the nation’s largest “no compromise” pro-gun organization, with 4.5 million members nationwide.
The Association is now calling on its members and supporters to contact these Republican senators to respectfully voice their displeasure with their votes.
