James Sullivan, recently defeated Texas Supreme Court justice, nominated to federal bench by Trump

James Sullivan wasn’t on the job market for long.

Just a week after losing his seat on the Texas Supreme Court, Sullivan has been nominated to serve as a federal judge in the Western District of Texas, President Donald Trump announced on social media Tuesday.

Sullivan, 45, graduated from Harvard Law School and clerked for the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. He climbed Texas’ conservative legal ladder through a series of positions under Gov. Greg Abbott, starting as assistant solicitor general during Abbott’s tenure as state attorney general. He joined the governor’s staff in 2018 as deputy general counsel, then was promoted to general counsel in his final stop before Abbott appointed him to the bench in January 2025.

Seeking a four-year term last Tuesday, his first election bid, Sullivan lost to Judge Chari Kelly, a Democrat currently serving on the Austin-based state appellate court. Democrats swept every statewide office, including four seats on the Supreme Court, narrowing the GOP majority from 9-0 to 5-4 on Texas’ highest civil court.

The same Democratic sweep that cost Sullivan his current job could also imperil his next assignment, as Republicans scramble to fill judicial vacancies in the waning days of their Senate majority.

Texas Sen. John Cornyn said on social media Tuesday that “an election result does not diminish a record of ability and integrity,” noting that Sullivan had already been approved by the bipartisan committee he and Sen. Ted Cruz put together to assess judicial nominees.

“He should be confirmed,” Cornyn said.

Trump, meanwhile, heaped praise on the nominee.

“James is an incredible jurist and lawyer, and will make an outstanding Federal District Court Judge,” the president said.