21 September 2026 marks 45 years since Sandra Day O’Connor was confirmed as a justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. The Senate approved the nomination in 1981 by 99 votes to none; one absent senator who would have voted yes does not change the recorded tally.

President Ronald Reagan had nominated her in July, after Justice Potter Stewart retired, fulfilling a campaign pledge to appoint a woman to the highest federal court. She took the judicial oath on 25 September, distinct from the 21 September vote.

Until then, in almost two centuries, every justice had been a man. Her earlier career included legal practice, the Arizona legislature and the state bench — not a partisan summary of cases.

On the Court her vote was often decisive in close cases. She retired in 2006 after more than 24 years. She died in 2023. An anniversary does not rewrite the case law.

The Supreme Court’s exhibition distinguishes the hearings, the Senate vote and the seating. Rulings are read in legal archives, not in slogans.

The source is the Supreme Court exhibition on the appointment. No selective list of cases used as a political argument.

Image: official portrait of Sandra Day O’Connor, public domain, Wikimedia Commons.

Source consulted: Sandra Day O’Connor: Appointment to the Supreme Court — SCOTUS.