As rumors of his retirement swirl in political circles, Justice Anthony Kennedy wraps up his 29th year on the Supreme Court without an announcement that he's stepping down.
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'Kennedy's Court': Meet 80-year-old Supreme Court justice Anthony Kennedy, who's rumored to retire soon
Here is a look at the Supreme Court Justice who has often shifted the balance on some of the high court's most controversial cases.
Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, the high court's longest serving member.
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But the 80-year-old justice could still declare he's retiring later this summer, as former Justice Sandra Day O'Connor did in 2005. That year, the Court adjourned June 27, and she issued a press release on July 1.
A conservative who can lean moderate in cases that concern individual freedoms, Kennedy has often provided the deciding fifth vote on cases without a clear majority. As someone who has frequently voted to support women's and LGBT rights, Kennedy's absence could definitively swing the Supreme Court to the right.
Here is a look at the Supreme Court justice who often shifted the balance on some of the court's most controversial cases — so much so that many have even called it "Kennedy's Court."
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Anthony McLeod Kennedy was born in Sacramento, California in 1936. Kennedy grew up with parents who were politically active, and often met well known lawmakers as a young boy.
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After finishing college at Stanford, Kennedy graduated from Harvard Law School, spent a year in the army, and then went on to teach constitutional law at the University of the Pacific in California.
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A devout Roman Catholic, Kennedy has often been described as a "goody-goody" in his early years. While on a summer trip to Europe, Kennedy once kept a bottle of whisky given to him by his father intact throughout the trip.
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Kennedy has been married to Mary Davis since 1963. The couple has three children.
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In 1975, President Gerald Ford appointed him to the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, which oversees Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington.
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Appointed by President Ronald Reagan and unanimously confirmed by the Senate, Kennedy was sworn in as a Supreme Court justice in 1987.
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More conservative during his early years in the Supreme Court, Kennedy started taking more moderate positions as time went on.
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Throughout his time as a Supreme Court justice, Kennedy gained a reputation as a "swing" vote. He has at times voted more liberally on issues that concern individual freedoms.
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As the court's strongest moderate, Kennedy often offers the decisive vote in controversial cases. In 2008, he moved the court against tighter gun control and toward individual rights to possess a firearm.
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In the same year, Kennedy also provided the fifth vote in a ruling that gave people arrested on suspicions of terrorism the right to challenge their detention in court.
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"At the heart of liberty is the right to define one's own concept of existence, of meaning, of the universe, and of the mystery of human life," Kennedy once wrote in a ruling that upheld the landmark Roe v. Wade case guaranteeing women's constitutional access to abortion.
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Kennedy has also emerged as an unexpected LGBT rights icon. He has frequently voted in support of their rights and, in 2015, was the decisive vote in legalizing gay marriage across the country.
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"The nature of marriage is that, through its enduring bond, two persons can together find other freedoms, such as expression, intimacy, and spirituality," Kennedy wrote in the majority opinion on the landmark case. "This is true for all persons, whatever their sexual orientation."
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Kennedy's "swing vote" reputation was cemented after other moderate Justice O'Connor retired in 2005. Still, Kennedy himself has reportedly hated being called the "swing vote" in the media.
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In April 2017, Kennedy swore in Neil Gorsuch as the new Supreme Court Justice. President Donald Trump's pick to fill the spot left by Justice Antonin Scalia's death, Gorsuch once served as a law clerk for Kennedy.
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Kennedy has often angered Republicans for failing to side with other conservatives on key issues. As rumors of his retirement swirl, many liberals worry that Kennedy's absence would swing the Supreme Court decisively in Trump's favor.
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On average, justices serve about 16 years on the high court. The longest serving member was Justice was William O. Douglas, who served for 36 years, 7 months, and eight days from 1939 to 1975.
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Kennedy, who turns 81 in July, has served for over 29 years and four months. He is the longest-serving justice currently on the court.
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