Instead, he has often voted with the court's liberal bloc.

The 17-strong liberal bloc of 1824 grew to 180 in 1827, and 274 in 1830.

The swing vote in the two cases was Justice Breyer, who usually sides with the court's four-member liberal bloc.

It appeared to be a clear endorsement of the approach the Labor party and other liberal blocs in Israel take to the Palestinians.

But at the same time the strongest liberal bloc actually had a pretty decent showing-polling a similar percentage to the salafis.

Close votes are not so common as they were in the years when the liberal bloc, while shrinking, still had a chance at an occasional victory.

While Justice Kennedy is frequently depicted as a "swing" vote, he did not join the liberal bloc in any of the 5-to-4 cases.

So far, she seems to be voting much like Souter did, as a solid member of the liberal bloc.

On the court, Sotomayor has been a reliable member of the liberal bloc when the justices divide along the commonly perceived ideological lines.

His prospects were hampered by a parochial record on social issues, placing him out of step with the more liberal blocs in his party.