On February 13, Justice Antonin Scalia passed away at the age of 79. As one of five Republicans in the Supreme Court versus the four Democrats, he tipped the balance of the Court. Now one month since Scalia’s passing, citizens are still left wondering who will succeed his seat, as well as to which party the balance will fall.

Justice Scalia was married to wife Maureen for 55 years, with nine children together and more than two dozen grandchildren. A strong man of the Catholic faith, Scalia was not your average Republican. Many people thought his views on protection for criminals and the right to burn the American flag were a disgrace, but Scalia stood by these opinions. As a very strong Second Amendment supporter, people also saw him as a gun rights advocate. Without him present on the Court, citizens fear what is to come.

In order to have a fair vote in the court system, the seat number has been set at nine since the Judiciary Act of 1869. However, this does not necessarily mean that every case brought to the attention of the Justices would be won by the Republicans who had the upper hand in having five seats. Nine chairs simply means that there would be a lesser chance of there being an equal amount of votes on one decision.

In order to have a new Justice, the President must appoint the candidate he feels fits the job best. There are no set qualifications to be a Justice, so the President could essentially appoint anyone.  An appointed Justice has a seat in the Supreme Court for life. They are able to voluntarily give up their seat and retire, but most choose to stay. Justice Scalia was appointed in September 1986 by President Reagan, nearly 30 years ago. The decision of the next Justice could stick for 30 or more years, which could have a huge impact on the country’s justice system.

For now, the scale will remain even with four Republicans and four Democrats. Until the beginning of next year when the next President is elected, the scale probably won’t be tipped.  However, President Obama has nominated the chief judge of the U. S. Court of Appeals, Merrick Garland. It is expected that Republican senators will decline Obama’s appointment. Most likely, this will reserve the right of nomination to whoever wins the presidential election later this year.