The leading candidate to replace the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court of the United States is Amey Coney Barrett - a conservative Catholic who has spoken openly about her faith.
A former professor of law at Notre Dame Univesity, Barrett once said that her legal career was "but a means to an end … and that end is building the Kingdom of God". She is also a member of a charismatic Catholic group called 'People of Praise'.
In 2017, Barrett was grilled about her religious convictions by members of the United States Senate after being appointed to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals by President Donald Trump. At one point, Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein famously remarked that the "dogma lived loudly within" Barrett, referring to her Catholic faith and how it informs her views on various social issues - Barrett is pro-life and against same-sex unions, believing that marriage should be "founded on the indissoluble commitment of a man and a woman”.
During her hearing, Barrett insisted that she would "follow all Supreme Court precedent without fail" and would "never impose my own personal convictions upon the law".
President Trump said at the weekend that he would seek to fill the Supreme Court opening "without delay", meaning the court's balance is soon likely to be majority conservative by 6-3. Barrett would be the sole conservative female on the bench if she is successfully appointed.
Barrett has seven children, two of whom were adopted from Haiti.