Jonathan Allen Kobes
Appointed by President Donald J. Trump in 2018 and confirmed by the Senate 51–50, Jonathan Allen Kobes is a Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. He earned a law degree from Harvard Law School in 2000. Sources ↓
- Born
- 1974 · age 52
- Appointed by
- Donald J. Trump, 2018
- Confirmed
- 51–50
- Education
- Dordt College 1996 · Harvard Law School 2000
- Succeeded
- Roger Leland Wollman
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Eighth Circuit succeeded Roger Leland Wollman | Trump (R) | 51–50 |
Party letters show the appointing president’s party, not the judge’s own.
Confirmation vote
Nomination Confirmed 50–50 on December 11, 2018 · 115th Congress, Roll Call 258. The Senate split evenly, so the Vice President cast the tie-breaking vote to confirm. Each senator links to their judicial-voting record.
Voted to confirm · 50
50 R
- Lamar Alexander(R-TN)
- John Barrasso(R-WY)
- Roy Blunt(R-MO)
- John Boozman(R-AR)
- Richard Burr(R-NC)
- Shelley Capito(R-WV)
- Bill Cassidy(R-LA)
- Susan Collins(R-ME)
- Bob Corker(R-TN)
- John Cornyn(R-TX)
- Tom Cotton(R-AR)
- Mike Crapo(R-ID)
- Ted Cruz(R-TX)
- Steve Daines(R-MT)
- Mike Enzi(R-WY)
- Joni Ernst(R-IA)
- Deb Fischer(R-NE)
- Cory Gardner(R-CO)
- Lindsey Graham(R-SC)
- Charles Grassley(R-IA)
- Orrin Hatch(R-UT)
- Dean Heller(R-NV)
- John Hoeven(R-ND)
- Cindy Hyde-Smith(R-MS)
- Jim Inhofe(R-OK)
- John Isakson(R-GA)
- Ron Johnson(R-WI)
- John Kennedy(R-LA)
- Jon Kyl(R-AZ)
- James Lankford(R-OK)
- Mike Lee(R-UT)
- Mitch McConnell(R-KY)
- Jerry Moran(R-KS)
- Lisa Murkowski(R-AK)
- Rand Paul(R-KY)
- David Perdue(R-GA)
- Rob Portman(R-OH)
- James Risch(R-ID)
- Pat Roberts(R-KS)
- Mike Rounds(R-SD)
- Marco Rubio(R-FL)
- Ben Sasse(R-NE)
- Tim Scott(R-SC)
- Richard Shelby(R-AL)
- Dan Sullivan(R-AK)
- John Thune(R-SD)
- Thomas Tillis(R-NC)
- Patrick Toomey(R-PA)
- Roger Wicker(R-MS)
- Todd Young(R-IN)
Voted against · 50
47 D, 1 R, 2 I
- Tammy Baldwin(D-WI)
- Michael Bennet(D-CO)
- Richard Blumenthal(D-CT)
- Cory Booker(D-NJ)
- Sherrod Brown(D-OH)
- Maria Cantwell(D-WA)
- Ben Cardin(D-MD)
- Thomas Carper(D-DE)
- Bob Casey(D-PA)
- Christopher Coons(D-DE)
- Catherine Cortez Masto(D-NV)
- Joe Donnelly(D-IN)
- Tammy Duckworth(D-IL)
- Richard Durbin(D-IL)
- Dianne Feinstein(D-CA)
- Jeff Flake(R-AZ)
- Kirsten Gillibrand(D-NY)
- Kamala Harris(D-CA)
- Maggie Hassan(D-NH)
- Martin Heinrich(D-NM)
- Heidi Heitkamp(D-ND)
- Mazie Hirono(D-HI)
- Doug Jones(D-AL)
- Timothy Kaine(D-VA)
- Angus King(I-ME)
- Amy Klobuchar(D-MN)
- Patrick Leahy(D-VT)
- Joe Manchin(D-WV)
- Edward Markey(D-MA)
- Claire McCaskill(D-MO)
- Robert Menendez(D-NJ)
- Jeff Merkley(D-OR)
- Christopher Murphy(D-CT)
- Patty Murray(D-WA)
- Bill Nelson(D-FL)
- Gary Peters(D-MI)
- Jack Reed(D-RI)
- Bernie Sanders(I-VT)
- Brian Schatz(D-HI)
- Charles Schumer(D-NY)
- Jeanne Shaheen(D-NH)
- Tina Smith(D-MN)
- Debbie Stabenow(D-MI)
- Jon Tester(D-MT)
- Tom Udall(D-NM)
- Chris Van Hollen(D-MD)
- Mark Warner(D-VA)
- Elizabeth Warren(D-MA)
- Sheldon Whitehouse(D-RI)
- Ron Wyden(D-OR)
Education
| Dordt College | B.A. | 1996 |
| Harvard Law School | J.D. | 2000 |
Before the bench
Professional career before and outside the federal bench, as recorded by the Federal Judicial Center.
| Law clerk, Hon. Roger L. Wollman, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit | 2000-2001 |
| Honors attorney, Central Intelligence Agency | 2002-2003 |
| Assistant U.S. attorney, District of South Dakota | 2003-2005 |
| Private practice, Sioux Falls, South Dakota | 2005-2008 |
| Counsel, advisor, and senior counsel, POET, LLC, Sioux Falls, South Dakota | 2008-2012 |
| Senior regulatory counsel, DuPont Pioneer, Johnston, Iowa | 2012-2013 |
| Director of corporate compliance, Raven Industries, Sioux Falls, South Dakota | 2013-2014 |
| Office of U.S. Sen. M. Michael Rounds, South Dakota, 2014-2018; deputy director, transition, 2014-2015; political fund designee, 2014-2016; deputy chief of staff and counsel, 2015-2016, ethics certification officer, 2014-2018, general counsel | 2016-2018 |
Questions & answers
- Who appointed Jonathan Allen Kobes?
- President Donald J. Trump appointed Jonathan Allen Kobes to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit in 2018.
- Was Jonathan Allen Kobes appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Jonathan Allen Kobes was appointed by President Donald J. Trump, a Republican. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Jonathan Allen Kobes's confirmation vote?
- The Senate confirmed Jonathan Allen Kobes 51–50 on December 11, 2018.
- Which court is Jonathan Allen Kobes on?
- Jonathan Allen Kobes is a Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.
Sources
Each fact on this page traces to a primary public record.
- FJC Biographical Directory
- Wikidata
- Portrait: U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee (Public domain), via Wikimedia Commons
- Confirmation roll-call (Senate.gov, 2018)
How we source & reconcile data → Data & Sources
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7 years on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. Data as of 2026-09-28. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).