2026-08-02 · contested story

Kamala Harris says the US Supreme Court should expand to 13 justices

On Friday, July 31, 2026, former Vice President Kamala Harris told the National Urban League's annual conference in Nashville that the United States should consider expanding the Supreme Court to 13 justices, while also calling for revisiting the Electoral College and statehood for Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C. Her remarks marked a more forceful stance than her 2024 campaign, when she backed term limits but stopped short of endorsing court expansion. The comments come as speculation grows about a possible 2028 presidential bid, though Harris said she has 'not made a decision' and is focused on the 2026 midterms.

How each side frames it

left
"focused on what she and other Democrats described as “illegitimate” appointments and alleged conflicts of interest"
"The case for some manner of reform to how the Court operates and to its membership is virtually indisputable, by now."
"the U.S. is the only modern constitutional democracy whose highest court has members who hold their seats for life, like kings"
"Court-packing, or adding seats to a court in order to change its ideological or partisan makeup, was considered an exceedingly radical idea as recently as a decade ago."
"in large part because of the behavior of certain members of that court and because of certain rulings, including the Dobbs decision"
center
"a popular idea among Democrats who have increasingly pushed for court reform"
"The Washington Examiner (Lean right) focused more on the political implications, highlighting Harris' outreach to progressives and Republican criticism of her proposals."
"The number of Supreme Court justices has remained at nine since 1869. Congress has the power to change the number and did so several times before that."
"the plan drew an unenthusiastic response from the White House and top Democrats and was denounced by Republicans"
"Biden's proposal was political theater and had no chance of going anywhere. I don't think that will change in this election because the country remains so divided"
right
"Former Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday embraced a series of progressive policy proposals she did not campaign on in 2024, including expanding the Supreme Court and abolishing the Electoral College"
"Kamala Harris vows to ‘revisit’ abolishing Electoral College, packing Supreme Court"
"Kamala Harris promises to destroy America if elected president"
"Their calls to expand and pack the Court will soon resume. It is telling that Democrats want to change the system that has guided our nation since its founding simply because they disagree with some of the Court's recent decisions."
"This is a classic case of if you can't win by the rules you are going to change the rules."

What each side left out

The left left out — covered by the Fox News & New York Post & CBS News
The left left out — covered by the Reuters & Newsweek
The right left out — covered by the CNN & Reuters & Yahoo/RCP
The right left out — covered by the AllSides & Ground News & Yahoo/RCP
The center left out — covered by the The Damage Report / CNN & The American Prospect

What's actually true?

[verified] Harris said the US should 'revisit the point of expanding the court to 13 justices like we have 13 district courts' at the National Urban League conference in Nashville.
[verified] Harris also called for revisiting the Electoral College and statehood for Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C.
[contested] The federal judiciary has 13 circuit courts and 94 district courts.
[verified] Six of the nine current justices were appointed by Republican presidents, including three selected by Trump, giving the court a 6-3 conservative majority.
[verified] Harris's remarks were more forceful than her 2020 White House bid, when she said she was 'open to that discussion.'
[verified] As vice president, Harris backed Biden's Supreme Court reforms such as term limits, though those proposals did not include increasing the number of justices.
[verified] The number of Supreme Court justices has remained at nine since 1869, and Congress has the constitutional power to change it and did so several times before that.
[verified] In 2021, Democratic lawmakers introduced legislation (the Judiciary Act) to expand the Supreme Court from nine to 13 justices, which drew an unenthusiastic response from the White House and top Democrats including Pelosi.

The narrative clash

Whether court expansion is legitimate reform or an illegitimate power grab
Left: The case for some manner of reform to how the Court operates and to its membership is virtually indisputable, by now.
Right: This is a classic case of if you can't win by the rules you are going to change the rules.
Terminology: 'expanding' versus 'packing' the court
Left: the idea of Supreme Court reform, which includes expanding the Supreme Court
Right: Kamala Harris vows to 'revisit' abolishing Electoral College, packing Supreme Court
Effect of expansion on the constitutional system
Left: expansion could be enacted by Congress, as it has done several times in its past.
Right: President Biden's proposal to radically overhaul the U.S. Supreme Court would tilt the balance of power and erode not only the rule of law, but the American people's faith in our system of justice

22 sources analyzed

CNN USA Today The American Prospect NBC Connecticut Vox KAKE Politico AllSides The Wall Street Journal Associated Press The Hill Ground News Reuters The Damage Report Newsweek WVEC 13 CBS News Yahoo! Search Fox News New York Post KTEN 10 Charlie Kirk

Perspectivity reads the coverage — not just who published it.

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