President Donald Trump has nominated Emil Bove, a top official in the U.S. Justice Department and one of Trump’s own former personal lawyers, to a seat on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals; it’s not immediately clear whether he’d take a New Jersey-based seat on the court or a different open seat based in Delaware, though the expectation appears to be that Bove is destined for the New Jersey seat.
Regardless, Bove’s nomination sets up a potentially bitter confirmation fight in the Senate, and could stand to shift the evenly divided Third Circuit (which has jurisdiction over New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, and the U.S. Virgin Islands) to the right.
“Emil is SMART, TOUGH, and respected by everyone,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, the social media platform where he now announces most of his nominations and endorsements. “He will end the Weaponization of Justice, restore the Rule of Law, and do anything else that is necessary to, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN. Emil Bove will never let you down!”
Bove, who worked as an assistant attorney in the Southern District of New York earlier in his career, represented Trump during his criminal trial in New York last year, and was named to a top Justice Department role once Trump became president in January. As acting deputy attorney general, Bove ordered prosecutors in Manhattan to drop their case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, which Democrats (and one of the fired prosecutors) have said was done as part of a quid pro quo related to immigration enforcement in New York City.
New Jersey’s two senators, Cory Booker and Andy Kim, released a joint statement calling Bove’s nomination “deeply troubling” and saying his past actions have “compromised [their] faith” that he can do the job fairly and impartially.
“Traditionally, selecting circuit court nominees is a collaborative process between the Senate and the White House,” the senators said. “In this case, that tradition was cast aside. We had hoped to find a pick that would inspire broad-based confidence and support, but this is a deeply polarizing choice. The people of New Jersey deserve a federal judge that will observe judicial independence and work to preserve and secure justice for all. Based on his record, Emil Bove will not do that.”
Longstanding Senate practice does indeed give senators a large amount of say over nominees covering their home states, often allowing senators to block lower-level nominees from their states entirely if they don’t approve. But Booker and Kim may have less sway over a Circuit Court nomination – especially since it’s not yet clear whether Bove is actually meant to be seated in New Jersey.
The court currently has two vacant seats. One was held by New Jerseyan Joseph Greenaway, a Barack Obama appointee who retired from the bench in 2023; Joe Biden nominated Adeel Mangi to fill the seat, but Mangi’s nomination ran into opposition from a critical handful of Senate Democrats, thus blocking his confirmation and leaving the seat open.
The other seat was held by Kent Jordan, a George W. Bush appointee who retired at the beginning of this year. Jordan’s duty station was in Wilmington, Delaware, while Greenaway’s was in Newark, New Jersey.
Bove does have some connections to New Jersey via his old law firm, Chiesa Shahinian & Giantomasi, which counts former interim U.S. Senator Jeffrey Chiesa (R-New Jersey), a New Jersey attorney general under Gov. Chris Christie, among its leaders. The New York Times also reported that Bove owns property in Pennsylvania, and that some conservatives are seeking to shift the Delaware-based Third Circuit seat into Pennsylvania instead.
The White House did not respond to a question on which seat Bove will be nominated to.
This story was updated at 10:05 a.m. on May 29 with more details on whether Bove will be put forward for the New Jersey seat.
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