What happens if Justice Samuel Alito retires from the Supreme Court

NewsWorldAmericasUS politicsWhat happens if Justice Samuel Alito retires from the Supreme CourtTrump praised Alito as ‘a great justice’ and said that he is prepared to appoint a replacementPaul M. Collins Jr. The Conversation Thursday 23 April 2026 21:02 BSTBookmarkBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popover{"translations":{"comments":"Go to comments","share":"Share","copyLink":"Copy link","bookmark":"Bookmark","removeBookmark":"Remove bookmark"},"showComments":false,"showBookmark":true,"articleId":"b2963843","articleMeta":{"url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/samuel-alito-retirement-speculation-trump-clarence-thomas-b2963843.html","title":"What happens if Justice Samuel Alito retires from the Supreme Court"}}CloseTrump calls Supreme Court tariff ruling ‘unfortunate’Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inboxGet our free Inside Washington emailGet our free Inside Washington emailEmail*SIGN UPI would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice{"className":"sc-1ge0fwe-0","newsletterData":{"regSourceNewsletter":"IND_INSIDE_WASHINGTON","regTitle":"Inside Washington","subscriptionGroup":"inside_washington","subscriptionGroupId":"af764e04-87eb-45e6-a84b-a7455ba70a1e","type":"inside_washington","pathPrefix":"/news/world/americas/us-politics","associatedAuthors":["Eric Garcia","John Bowden"],"title":"Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox","mobileTitle":"Get our free Inside Washington email","imageSrc":"https://static.independent.co.uk/static-assets/images/newsletters/insideWashington1_1.png","label":"I would like to receive morning headlines Monday - Friday plus breaking news alerts by email","newsletterKey":"receiveInsideWashingtonNews","regSourceSection":"US politics","regSourceMethod":"NSCs"},"isClimate":false}Washington is buzzing with the possibility th...