Watch: Senate holds a key procedural vote on Brett Kavanaugh's Supreme Court nomination
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The Senate is set to vote Friday on a procedural step that would propel Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh to a final confirmation vote as early as this weekend.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., announced the prior evening that lawmakers would convene at 9:30 a.m. ET, with the "cloture" vote to end the debate on Kavanaugh's nomination expected to take place at 10:30 a.m.
If the cloture vote passes, Kavanaugh's final confirmation vote could take place Saturday evening.
While Kavanaugh was widely considered a shoe-in for the high court when President Donald Trump first nominated him in July, the conservative judge came under fire in mid-September when multiple women publicly accused him of past sexual misconduct.
Kavanaugh vehemently denied the allegations against him, telling the Senate Judiciary Committee last week, "I've never sexually assaulted anybody."
Asked on Fox News how the vote would go, Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, who oversaw Kavanaugh's contentious confirmation hearings, said, "As of now I don't really know and I don't know if anybody else does."