Washington, DC…Today, U.S. Senator Kamala D. Harris released the following statement on Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy’s announcement that he will retire from the Court at the end of next month: “This Supreme Court vacancy puts issues that affect every single American in the balance, from a woman’s constitutionally protected right to make her own health care decisions to privacy, equality and civil rights.

“Given the stakes of this seat which will determine the fate of protected constitutional rights, the American people, who are set to vote in less than four months, deserve to have their voice heard. We should not vote on confirmation until they have voted at the ballot box.

“The President’s list of potential nominees are complete non-starters. They are conservative ideologues instead of mainstream jurists. We cannot and will not accept them to serve on the highest court in the land which is supposed to stand for equal protection under the law and justice for all.”

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