With Sen. George Voinovich of Ohio announcing this afternoon that he will vote in favor of Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation, all Republican votes are accounted for: Nine will vote yes, and 31 will vote no.

The White House may tout this as a "bipartisan" victory, but conservative interest groups also see it as a victory for them. Curt Levey, executive director of the Committee for Justice, said the goal was to break 30 no votes, and that's just what happened Wednesday night when Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska announced her intent to oppose Sotomayor -- the last Republican to do so.

In his remarks today, Voinovich continued a pattern among Republicans: denouncing the ideological considerations that Barack Obama cited in voting against George W. Bush's Supreme Court nominees as a senator, yet still expressing support for Sotomayor. "If I applied President Obama's standard, I would not be voting for Judge Sotomayor, his nominee," Voinovich said. "The president was wrong. His standard makes the whole nominations process an exercise in partisan politics."

Sen. Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, a Democrat up for re-election in a conservative state, also announced this morning that she intends to vote yes. In her speech, Lincoln said that she has "heard from a number of Arkansans, including those in our legal community, who have expressed strong support for Judge Sotomayor, emphasizing her unique background, impressive resume and solid judicial record." Conservative interest groups saw Lincoln as potentially vulnerable on Second Amendment issues, but that didn't seem to resonate with her: She didn't mention the issue once in her speech.

The final vote could be 68-31 if all remaining Democrats vote yes (except the ailing Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts). Robert Byrd of West Virginia, who has been ill, is expected to attend, said Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. The office of Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., who has been hospitalized with a broken leg, said she will be voting today.