Kavanaugh gets green light for Supreme Court

Conservative US judge Brett Kavanaugh was confirmed to the Supreme Court on Saturday by a thin margin in the senate, ending months of rancour over his nomination and giving Donald Trump one of the biggest victories of his presidency.

Kavanaugh was sworn in shortly after the senate voted 50-48 in his favour — cementing the high court’s shift to the right under the Republican leader, who has chosen two of the nine sitting judges.

Protesters rallied in Washington and other US cities against the ascent of the judge, who has faced multiple allegations of sexual misconduct and been criticised for his angry partisan rhetoric.

The prolonged nomination battle has roiled American politics, firing up both Republicans and Democrats a month before crucial midterm elections.

The two-vote margin of victory made it the closest Supreme Court confirmation vote since 1881 — and by far the most contentious since Clarence Thomas in 1991.

“This is a historic night,” Trump told supporters at a rally in Kansas after signing 53-yearold Kavanaugh’s commission aboard Air Force One.

“I stand before you today on the heels of a tremendous victory for our nation, our people and our beloved constitution.”

Trump will host Kavanaugh at the White House for a public swearing-in ceremony on Monday, following Saturday’s formal oath-taking at the high court.

Kavanaugh’s nomination as a replacement for retiring judge Anthony Kennedy was controversial from the start — but the initial focus was solely on his conservative views.

His ascent to the Supreme Court was thrown into doubt when psychologist Christine Blasey Ford testified he had sexually assaulted her when they were in high school.