President Donald Trump announced nine people he intends to nominate for federal district courts in six states, Reuters reported.
Reuters said Trump announced the selections on August 18, 2026. The report noted that the Senate had limited time to consider judicial nominations before the November 3 midterm elections, when control of Congress could change.
Key Facts
- The selections cover lifetime positions on federal trial courts in six states.
- The announcement gives the candidates no judicial authority.
- Neither the White House nor Senate Judiciary public nominations index listed the nine when checked August 20.
Selections across six states
Federal district courts are the federal system’s trial courts. Reuters identified nine intended nominees for these courts.
In Oklahoma, Trump selected Zach West for the Northern District and Trevor Pemberton for the Eastern District, Reuters reported.
Reuters identified Kyle Reardon for the District of Alaska. It named Courtney Coker for the Northern District of Texas and Richard Bennett for the Southern District of Texas.
The report also named Brad Kelley and Peter Mansfield for the Eastern District of Louisiana. Daniel Ballou was selected for the Eastern District of Kentucky, and Robert Long for the Middle District of Florida.
These selections do not make any of the nine a judge. They identify the people Trump intends to nominate for the vacancies.
What the public records show
The White House nominations index showed August 7 as its newest Senate transmission when checked August 20. It did not list any of the nine announced selections.
The Senate Judiciary Committee’s public nominations list also did not include any of the nine when checked that day.
Those records describe what appeared on the two public indexes. They do not by themselves prove whether another procedural step occurred.
What must happen next
The president must formally nominate the candidates before the Senate can consider them. The process may include a Judiciary Committee review, hearings and a vote by the full Senate.
Senate confirmation would not be the final step. After confirmation, the president must sign a commission appointing the judge. The appointee must then take the judicial oath before exercising federal judicial authority.
