Brett Kavanaugh has been sworn in as the 114th US Supreme Court justice after the Senate narrowly voted to confirm him.
The confirmation on Saturday ended a bitter battle between Republicans and Democrats during a confirmation process that transfixed the nation following allegations of sexual misconduct against the nominee, which he has denied.
Senators voted 50-48 in favour of Kavanaugh, Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski of Montana opposed the nomination, but voted "present" out of courtesy for fellow Montana Senator Steven Daines who was out of town for his daughter's wedding. He was in favour of Kavanaugh.
The confirmation is seen as a clear win for President Donald Trump in his efforts to further push the court to the right.
"I applaud and congratulate the US Senate for confirming our GREAT NOMINEE, Judge Brett Kavanaugh, to the United States Supreme Court," Trump tweeted just after the vote.
Kavanaugh replaces Justice Anthony Kennedy, who retired earlier this year. Although Kennedy was seen as a conservative judge, he was often a swing vote on key issues such as reproductive rights, affirmative action and gay rights.
Kavanaugh's confirmation comes a little less than three weeks after Christine Blasey Ford publicly accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her in the 1980s. According to Ford, the judge groped her and tried to remove her clothing at a party when they were both teenagers. Two other women also came forward with sexual misconduct allegations against Kavanaugh.
The judge has vehemently denied the allegations.
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