Manchin says he will vote to confirm Jackson as Supreme Court justice

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) said Friday that he will vote in support of confirming Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court.

Why it matters: Manchin's support essentially guarantees Jackson's confirmation.

The big picture: While there are some Republican senators who have yet to say whether they will vote in favor of Jackson, if they decide not to, Democrats can confirm her with a party-line vote and Vice President Kamala Harris as the tiebreaker.

• Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Thursday that he will vote "no."
• McConnell said that Jackson deflected questions on judicial philosophy and that he could not support her because she is backed by groups that advocate for court-packing.

"After meeting with [Jackson], considering her record, and closely monitoring her testimony and questioning before the Senate Judiciary Committee this week, I have determined I intend to vote for her nomination to serve on the Supreme Court," Manchin said.

• "Her wide array of experiences in varying sectors of our judicial system have provided Judge Jackson a unique perspective that will serve her well on our nation’s highest court," he added.
• "I am confident Judge Jackson is supremely qualified and has the disposition necessary to serve as our nation’s next Supreme Court Justice."

What to watch: Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) announced this week that Jackson's nomination will be considered at a markup vote on March 28.

• However, under Senate rules, any committee vote can be "held over" for one week, making the committee's actual vote on April 4.

Go deeper: The Senate's Supreme Court charade