A plurality of voters nationwide believe Judge Sonia Sotomayor should be confirmed as the nation’s next Supreme Court justice, and 90% say it’s likely that she will be. That figure includes 63% who say her confirmation is very likely.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that perceptions of Sotomayor and her prospects have changed little over the past couple of weeks.

Forty-two percent (42%) now favor confirmation of Sotomayor while 34% are opposed. Earlier in the month, those numbers were 41% and 36% respectively.

Sixty-nine percent (69%) of Democrats favor confirmation while 58% of Republicans are opposed. By a 41% to 30% margin, those not affiliated with either major party lean against confirmation.

Black and Hispanic voters overwhelmingly favor the confirmation of Sotomayor. White voters are fairly evenly divided. Men are more supportive than women.

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Overall, 50% of voters have a favorable opinion of Sotomayor while 40% have an unfavorable view. Those figures include 21% with a very favorable opinion and 19% who offer a very unfavorable assessment.

Forty-four percent (44%) believe that Sotomayor is politically liberal while 36% view her as a moderate.

The initial reaction to Sotomayor was more positive than the reaction to those nominated for the Supreme Court by President George W. Bush.

The nominee, President Obama's first choice for the high court, has been criticized for comments suggesting that a “wise Latina woman” would make better judicial decisions than a white male. In response to that criticism, the president has said that Sotomayor "misspoke." Americans overwhelmingly believe that judges of different gender and ethnic backgrounds would reach the same decisions if they honestly tried to apply the law as written.

Eighty-three percent (83%) believe that the U.S. legal system should treat all Americans equally. Only eight percent (8%) believe the law should be used to help those with less power and influence.

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