President Trump to Nominate Arkansas Federal Judge Lee Rudofsky for Eighth Circuit

Judicial Confirmations, ,

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, August 12, 2026

On Wednesday, President Donald J. Trump issued a statement on Truth Social announcing his intention to nominate U.S. District Judge Lee Rudofsky to serve on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.

Family Council President Jerry Cox released a statement saying, “We are very pleased with President Trump’s decision to nominate Lee Rudofsky for the Eighth Circuit. Judge Rudofsky has served as a federal judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas since 2019. Judge Rudofsky is a graduate of Cornell University and Harvard Law School, and he has experience with constitutional law. As Solicitor General for the State of Arkansas, he tirelessly defended state laws and policies in court—including policies that protected taxpayers from subsidizing abortionists like Planned Parenthood through Medicaid funding. While there were many other qualified candidates for the position, I am confident Judge Rudofsky will do an excellent job serving on the Eighth Circuit, and I urge the United States Senate to confirm him.”

Family Council is a conservative education and research organization based in Little Rock.

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After 18 Months, No Judicial Nomination for Arkansas From Biden Administration

Judicial Confirmations,

After 18 months, the Biden Administration has yet to nominate a federal judge to fill a judicial vacancy in Arkansas.

U.S. District Judge Paul Holmes, III, of Fort Smith took Senior Status effective November 10, 2021.

Senior Status is a form of semiretirement for federal judges. It means the president will need to nominate a new judge to fill the position full time.

There are currently some 80 judicial vacancy in America, with many nominees pending before congress.

As of last week, President Biden has not nominated anyone to fill Judge Holmes’ position in the Western District of Arkansas.

U.S. District Court nominations rarely receive very much attention, but they are critical judicial positions.

When a state law is challenged in federal court, district judges are the first to hear the case. Right now many of the district judges in Arkansas — including U.S. District Judges Paul Holmes, James Moody, and Kristine Baker — are Obama appointees.

Because our district courts lean to the left, Arkansas often loses court cases over abortion and other social issues at the lower level, but we get better rulings from the more conservative judges on the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.

At this point, it is unclear when — or if — President Biden will nominate a U.S. District Judge for Arkansas’ Western District.

Family Council intends to continue monitoring the judicial nomination and confirmation process.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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Biden Administration to Nominate Federal Judge for Western District of Arkansas

Current Events, Judicial Confirmations,

The Biden-Harris Administration will soon nominate a federal district judge to fill a vacancy in Arkansas’ Western District.

U.S. District Judge Paul Holmes, III, of Fort Smith took Senior Status effective November 10, 2021.

Senior Status is a form of semiretirement for federal judges. It means the president will need to nominate a new judge to fill the position full time.

There are currently some 77 judicial vacancy in America and more than two dozens nominees pending before congress.

As of last week, President Biden has not nominated anyone to fill Judge Holmes’ position on the court.

U.S. District Court nominations rarely receive very much attention, but they are critical judicial positions.

When a state law is challenged in federal court, district judges are the first to hear the case. Right now many of the district judges in Arkansas — including U.S. District Judges Paul Holmes, James Moody, and Kristine Baker — are Obama appointees.

Because our district courts lean to the left, Arkansas often loses court cases over abortion and other social issues at the lower level, but we get better rulings from the more conservative judges on the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.

It doesn’t look like those dynamics are going to change under President Biden. However, it will be interesting to see who he nominates to replace Judge Holmes in the coming weeks.

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