WASHINGTON (AFP) — US Supreme Court Justice David Souter is planning to retire at the end of the court's current term, US media has reported, giving President Barack Obama an early opportunity to name a judge to the highest US court.
"David Souter intends to retire," NBC News reported late Thursday, citing unnamed sources.
National Public Radio, citing US government officials, said that Souter is expected to "remain on the bench until a successor has been chosen and confirmed."
Souter, 69, "has informed the White House of his decision," NPR added.
Due to likely political wrangling in the US Congress over Souter's successor, it is possible a new judge may not be ready by the time the Supreme Court reconvenes in October.
President George HW Bush appointed Souter, a former appeals court judge, to the bench in 1990.
The opportunity to name a new justice comes as a slew of controversial issues -- including gay marriage, abortion rights, gun ownership, the death penalty and Internet privacy -- are all likely to resurface in coming years.
An Obama pick, however, is unlikely to drastically alter the Court's ideological leaning, as Souter generally votes with the three liberal-leaning justices.
Currently four conservatives and four liberals -- with moderate Anthony Kennedy holding the middle ground -- compose a balance on the Court that Obama, a Democrat, is expected to sustain.
For his first appointment, Obama is widely expected to back a female judge, as Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the Court's only female justice, is currently recovering from pancreatic cancer surgery.
Traditionally, Republicans have lobbied for judges who strictly adhere to the constitution, and criticized Democratic appointees who they say make new policy through court rulings.
Only two women have served on the Supreme Court -- Sandra Day O'Connor retired in 2006 -- and two African-Americans have succeeded one another in the same seat.
During his campaign for the presidency, Obama hinted at what he would expect of any Supreme Court appointees.
"I taught constitutional law for 10 years, and ... when you look at what makes a great Supreme Court justice, it's not just the particular issue and how they rule but it's their conception of the court," Obama said during a presidential debate.
"And part of the role of the court is that it is going to protect people who may be vulnerable in the political process, the outsider, the minority, those who are vulnerable, those who don't have a lot of clout."
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