ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) – Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski says the person who replaces Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court should be in the same mold as the retiring justice.

Speaking Monday at an Anchorage news conference, Murkowski noted Kennedy’s pivotal role on the court. He has often served as a swing vote between the court’s liberal and conservative justices.

President Donald Trump has said he will announce his nominee to the court on July 9. Abortion rights are seen as a litmus test for the next nominee.

Murkowski and Maine Sen. Susan Collins are moderate Republicans who support access to abortion services.

Collins has told CNN she couldn’t support a nominee who “demonstrated hostility” toward Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision that affirmed women’s right to abortion.

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