Luján planning return to Senate in time to vote for Supreme Court nominee

Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) said on Sunday that he plans to return to the Senate in time to vote for President Biden’s Supreme Court nominee. 

Luján, who suffered a stroke earlier this month, said in a tweet that he was grateful for the support he his family have received. 

“Let me begin by expressing my thanks for the outpouring of support my family and I have received from across New Mexico and around America,” Luján said. 

“Your prayers, your words, your daily videos, your words of encouragement have been so reassuring and have given me a lot of strength,” the 49-year-old senator added.

Luján also said that he plans to return to Washington, D.C., in “just a few short weeks.”

“I’m proud to report then I’ll be back on the floor of the United States Senate in just a few short weeks to vote on important legislation, and to consider a Supreme Court nominee,” Luján said. 

“New Mexicans can know they will have a voice and a vote during this process,” Luján added. “That has never changed.”

In recent interview with NBC News, Biden said he has narrowed his search for a replacement for Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer to four candidates. 

Biden has pledged to nominate a Black woman to the Supreme Court to replace Breyer, who announced his retirement last month after spending nearly three decades on the nation’s highest court.