The U.S. Senate confirmed Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the U.S. Supreme Court Thursday afternoon. She is the first black woman to be confirmed as a justice. Jackson will replace Justice Stephen Breyer, who announced in January his plans to retire in June.

The Senate voted 53-47 to confirm Jackson, with three Republicans voting with the Democrats in her favor: Sens. Mitt Romney of Utah, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine.

President Joe Biden called Jackson’s confirmation a “historic moment” in a post on Twitter.

Judge Jackson’s confirmation was a historic moment for our nation. We’ve taken another step toward making our highest court reflect the diversity of America. She will be an incredible Justice, and I was honored to share this moment with her. pic.twitter.com/K8SAh25NL5

— President Biden (@POTUS) April 7, 2022

“Based on her record, I believe she will prove to be the furthest left of any justice to have ever served on the Supreme Court,” Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said.

Jackson’s confirmation hearing was marked by questions from Republicans on her record of lenient sentencing in child pornography cases, her views on critical race theory, and the definition of the word “woman” — a definition Jackson declined to give. She is considered by many to be highly qualified for the job based on her education, experience, hard work and intelligence. She will be the first justice to have experience as a federal public defender.

The ideological balance of the court remains 6-3, conservatives to liberals.

Aliya Kuykendall is a staff writer and proofreader for The Stream. You can follow Aliya on Twitter @AliyaKuykendall and follow The Stream @Streamdotorg.