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"Over the weekend, longtime Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia passed away, leaving behind nine children, a loving wife, and some of the most socially divisive cases in decades on the docket. The Republican-controlled Senate and President Barack Obama, a Democrat, will now face off over appointing the next justice, a lifetime position that will likely hold a swing vote in America\u2019s highest court and largest cases. \n\nWith Scalia\u2019s death, there are just eight justices left, which means they can tie in their decisions and therefore be ineffective in their position of power. When there are only eight justices, either a 5 to 3 majority is needed, or the lower court\u2019s decision is upheld. It\u2019s Obama&amp;#39;s right to nominate the next justice, but the Senate has to approve his decision, and within hours of Scalia\u2019s death being announced, the Republican Senate majority leader vowed to block the president&amp;#39;s selection, and cited the fact that we\u2019re in an election year as a reason. \n\n\u201CThe American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice,\u201D majority leader Mitch McConnell said in a statement. \u201CTherefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.\u201D \n\nThe problem with McConnell\u2019s logic? America has already spoken by electing Obama president in 2008 and again in 2012, granting him full power to nominate a new justice. That power is bestowed to the president in the Constitution, a document Scalia himself held close to his heart in all of his decisions. \n\nThe Republican-led Senate is hoping to hold the nomination hostage to avoid an Obama appointee who might have liberal views, and would serve on the court for decades to come. If they can delay Obama&amp;#39;s pick, and a Republican president is elected this November, they could possibly change the course of history and future decisions. The 2016 presidential election, however, is still anyone\u2019s race and leaving the bench incomplete for over a year would be almost unprecedented; there are several important cases that still need to be decided this term from abortion to affirmative action and climate change.\n\nNo matter what, Obama promised to nominate a justice before the end of his term, and said, \u201CI intend to do my job between now and January 20th of 2017. I expect [senators] to do their job as well.\u201D While he has many eligible candidates to pick from, we\u2019d love to see him elect another woman. Here are five particularly impressive ones who project girl power, and would make an excellent addition to America\u2019s highest court.\n\nLoretta Lynch  \n\nCurrently serving as the United States Attorney General, Lynch studied at Harvard Law School and spent time as a prosecutor in New York City. She\u2019s well liked by a number of Democratic leaders, including Joe Biden, Barack Obama, and Bill Clinton, and as such, she\u2019d be a natural nominee for a liberal president. She\u2019s also won international respect after taking down corruption in FIFA, the international soccer organization, last year. \n\nKamala Harris  \n\nThe current California Attorney General, Harris is the first African American, South Asian, and woman and to have the high profile job. In her role as the state\u2019s chief lawyer, Harris has focused on human trafficking, drug busts, mortgage fraud, and consumer rights. She attended Howard University and the University of California, Hastings law school. Harris has plenty of experience in law: she\u2019s worked as a district attorney in San Francisco and as a county district attorney\u2019s office prosecutor. \n\nThere\u2019s just one problem: she doesn\u2019t want the job. \u201CI\u2019m not putting my name in for consideration. I do not wish to be considered,\u201D Harris said this week. \n\nPatricia Ann Millett  \n\nCurrently appointed to the United States Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C., Millett studied at Harvard Law School and was previously in private practice. She also has a lot of experience on the other side of the court: she\u2019s appeared before the Supreme Court as an attorney in 32 cases. \n\nAs if facing the highest court in the country that many times isn\u2019t impressive enough, Millett is also a second degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do.\n\nJacqueline Nguyen  \n\nCurrently a member of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco, Nguyen was once a refugee in a California camp after fleeing from Dalat, Vietnam during the Vietnam War. Nguyen went on to study at UCLA and worked in private practice. She has worked as a prosecutor, an assistant United States attorney, and a judge of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County. \n\nJane Kelly  \n\nCurrently a judge on the 8th Circuit, SCOTUSblog reports Kelly was a unanimous decision by the Senate, which bodes well in this tumultuous time between the president and senators. Kelly also has history with Judiciary Committee chair Senator Chuck Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, where Kelly served as a public defender. An added bonus? She went to law school with the president. \n\nRelated:  President Obama Can&amp;#39;t Stop Talking About How Much He&amp;#39;s Going to Miss Malia\n\nCheck out Teen Vogue\u2019s February issue cover star, Zo\u00EB Kravitz.\n\n"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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