The final vote to confirm President Obama’s first Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor will be held early next week before the Senators leave Washington for their summer recess. With the overwhelming support of the Senate Judiciary Committee, who voted 13-7 to endorse the nominee this week, Sotomayor will likely cruise to the bench.

Sotomayor, who would be the third female justice and the first Latina, has squarely received the support of the left and, surprisingly, a number of Republicans as well. So far, seven GOP senators have committed to voting for the Obama nominee, including Sen. Lindsey Graham (R -S.C.), the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-T.N.), the third-ranking GOP Senate leader.

In a speech on the Senate floor this morning, Alexander commended Sotomayor on her sterling judicial credentials and told his colleagues that despite his disagreement with her on some issues, “courts were never intended to be political bodies composed of judges ‘on your side’ who would reliably tilt your way in controversial cases.”

The Senate Judiciary Committee vote was pushed back a week to July 28 at the behest of GOP leadership, who said that, although they fully expect Sotomayor to be seated, they had the right to request a postponement. Committee Chairman Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-V.T.) said that Sotomayor will most likely take the bench–replacing retired Justice David Souter–when the Supreme Court convenes for a special session in September. Despite worries from the Right that Sotomayor could turn radical once confirmed, the justice is seen as a moderate who will not upset the balance of the high court.

photo credit: Sam Ruaat’s Flickr photostream (creative commons)