Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a powerful liberal judge on the U.S. Supreme Court, died at the age of 87 of complications from pancreatic cancer.
Judge Ginsburg died at her home in Washington, DC, surrounded by her family on Saturday night (local time), according to a statement issued by the US Supreme Court.
The second woman appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court, Judge Ginsburg served 27 years after being appointed by Bill Clinton in 1993.
Her departure may lead to a major change in the ideological balance of the court, which currently has a 5-4 governorate majority.
Judge Ginsburg’s death gives US President Donald Trump an opportunity to expand the conservative majority on the court.
And in July she announced she was undergoing chemotherapy for liver lesions, the last of her many battles with cancer.
Judge Ginsburg spent her final years on the podium as leader of the court’s liberal wing.
She has been particularly admired by younger women and has been affectionately known as the “notorious RBG” for her defense of the rights of women and minorities, along with the strength and resilience she has demonstrated in the face of personal loss and health crises.
These health problems included five episodes of cancer that began in 1999, falls that led to fractured ribs, insertion of a stent to clear an artery blockage, and various other treatments in the hospital after I turned 75.
It resisted calls from liberals to retire during Barack Obama’s presidency at a time when Democrats were occupying the Senate and it was possible to confirm an alternative with similar views.
More is coming.
