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Judge Brett Kavanaugh secured enough votes for his final Senate confirmation to be an Associate Justice to the United States Supreme Court.

During the Senate procedural vote on Friday, undecided Republican Senators, Jeff Flake of Arizona and Susan Collins of Maine said they will support Kavanaugh’s confirmation.

Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski bucked their party. Manchin was the only Democrat to vote yes while Murkowski is the sole Republican to vote no on Kavanaugh.

The outcome was 51-49 votes thus Kavanaugh is almost certain to be confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court on Saturday.

Collins, Manchin believe Kavanaugh is qualified

On Friday, Collins delivered a lengthy speech explaining why she will vote to confirm the Supreme Court nominee.  She noted that Kavanaugh is the “first Supreme Court nominee to express view that precedent is not merely a practice and tradition, but rooted in the Article III of the Constitution itself...” He believes that “honoring precedent is essential to maintaining public confidence.”

In addition, Collins said she found Christine Blasey Ford’s testimony to be “sincere, painful, and compelling. However, her allegations of sexual assault against the Supreme Court nominee lack corroborating evidence. The senator stressed, “I do not believe these charges can fairly prevent Judge Kavanaugh from serving on the Court.”

Furthermore, Collins emphasized that the people who know Kavanaugh described him as an “exemplary public servant, judge, teacher, coach, husband, and father.”

She concluded her speech by expressing her hope that Kavanaugh “will work to lessen the divisions in the Supreme Court” and restore the public confidence in the judiciary and the highest court. “Mr. President, I will vote to confirm Judge Kavanaugh,” said Collins.

Following Collins’ speech, Manchin announced his decision to support Kavanaugh. He explained that he had reservations because of the Supreme Court nominee’s temperament and the seriousness of the accusations against him. However, he found Kavanaugh to be a “qualified jurist” based on the FBI report and other information.

Murkowski says Kavanaugh is “not the right person for the court”

During her remarks at the Senate Floor, Murkowski explained that she has a very high standard for any nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court.

She cited the Code of Judicial Conduct Rule 1.2, which requires that “a judge must act at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the independence, integrity, and impartiality of the judiciary.” A judge “shall avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety.”

According to Murkowski, Kavanaugh failed to pass the high standard because the “appearance of impropriety has become unavoidable.” She came to that conclusion after the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing last week.

“I believe that Judge Kavanaugh is a good man. He's clearly a learned judge, but in my conscience…I could not conclude that he is the right person for the court at this time,” said Murkowski.

Flake will vote yes “unless something big changed”

Meanwhile, earlier on Friday, Flake told reporters that he plans to back Kavanaugh’s appointment. He added, “Unless something big changed, I don’t see what would. But anyway, I’m glad we had a better process.”

When asked about Murkowski’s decision, Flake said he has a high regard for her colleague. According to him, “I admire her a lot and everybody had to make their own decision. I think the world of her.”