Joe Biden says voters will know Supreme Court plans before election

White House hopeful says electorate has right to know ‘packing’ position

Joe Biden says he plans to tell voters before election day if he will expand the size of the Supreme Court.

The Democratic presidential candidate has so far refused to confirm if he will “pack” the court following Donald Trump’s nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to replace the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

But he told host George Stephanopoulos at his ABC town hall that he would clarify his position soon.

“They do have a right to know where I stand and they’ll have the right to know before they vote,” said Mr Biden.

He made the comments after being asked about the rushed confirmation of Ms Barrett, who Republicans hope to drive through before 3 November.

"If I answer the question directly, then all the focus will be on what's Biden going to do if he wins instead of, 'Is it appropriate what's going on now?'" said Mr Biden.

The former vice president added that he was “not a fan” of packing the court but will review his position if and when Ms Barrett is confirmed.

“I'm open to considering what happens from that point on," he said.

Democrats have urged Mr Biden to add additional liberal justices to rebalance the court if he wins the White House.

Mr Biden has been forthright in his opinion that the Republican-controlled Senate should wait until the result of the presidential election to replace Justice Ginsburg.

Ms Barrett’s confirmation would heavily tilt the court giving it a conservative of 6-3, with Ms Barrett likely to serve for more than three decades on the bench.