The Modern Supreme Court is
a Conservative Institution
Created by:
Morgan Reeder
Sources:
Andrew D. Martin and
Kevin M. Quinn,
Lee Epstein
The modern history of the United States Supreme Court is a largely conservative one. Ideologically, the two most significant members are the Chief Justice, who influences which cases are heard, and the median justice, who is often the deciding vote in close rulings. The Martin-Quinn score measures the relative ideology of Supreme Court justices since 1937. In those 81 terms, 70% have had both a conservative-leaning Chief Justice and median justice compared to 11% of terms with a liberal-leaning Chief Justice and median justice.
Chief Justice
Median
justice
Portrait color indicates
average Martin-Quinn score
Martin-Quinn score
1937
Charles
Hughes
-2
2
4
-4
0
Each row represents the nine
justices at the start of each
term, ordered by ideology.
1941
Harlan
Stone
1946
Fred
Vinson
In the measured period, the
Chief Justice has been the
most conservative justice for
10 terms but never the most
liberal justice on the court.
1953
Earl
Warren
Warren
Median justice on
the Warren Court
Earl Warren was the last
liberal-leaning Chief Justice
and the only liberal-leaning
justice on average.
1969
Warren
Burger
Burger
Median justice on
the Burger Court
1986
William Rehnquist’s first
term as Chief Justice was
the most conservative in
the measured history.
William
Rehnquist
Rehnquist
Median justice on
the Rehnquist Court
2005
John
Roberts
Roberts
Median justice on
the Roberts Court
In the 2014-2015 term,
Anthony Kennedy became
the first liberal-leaning
swing vote in 46 years.
In the 2018-19 term, the swing
vote will likely be the Chief Justice
for the first time since 1937.