Whitney Hermandorfer Becomes First New Federal Judge During Trump's Second Term
Hermandorfer will serve on the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.
The U.S. Senate today held a recorded vote to confirm one individual as an Article III federal judge. With this confirmation, 235 judges nominated by President Donald Trump have now been confirmed by the Senate across his two terms in office. With today’s action, 55 of Trump’s judicial nominees have been approved for service on federal appellate courts.
In a 46-42 vote, Whitney D. Hermandorfer was confirmed as a Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. She becomes Trump’s seventh confirmation to the 16-person court, with no additional vacancies at this time. Once commissioned, she will become the youngest judge serving on this court.
46 Republicans approved Hermandorfer’s nomination. 40 Democrats and two Independents voted in opposition. 12 Senators did not vote.
Hermandorfer assumes the Nashville, Tennessee-based seat currently held by Jane Branstetter Stranch, who intended to take senior status upon confirmation of her successor. A nominee of President Barack Obama, Stranch has served on this court since September 2010. Hermandorfer was nominated to this seat on the federal judiciary by Trump in May 2025.
A graduate of the George Washington University School of Law, Hermandorfer clerked for Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito from July 2018 to July 2019 and Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett from July 2020 to July 2021. Outside of that position, she worked as an associate at Williams and Connolly LLP from 2019 to 2020 and again from 2021 to 2023. Since 2023, she has been Director of the Strategic Litigation Unit in the Office of the Tennessee Attorney General. She has been a member of the Federalist Society since 2016.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit covers appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee.