Update: Trump announced Gorsuch's nomination Tuesday night. You can see the updated story here.

President Donald Trump will name Judge Neil Gorsuch as his nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court, according to reports from CNN.

Gorsuch and Judge Thomas Hardiman are in Washington D.C. where Trump is set to make his announcement tonight at 8 p.m. ET (7 p.m. CT). Former Alabama Attorney General and current Federal Appeals Court Judge Bill Pryor is believed to have been one of the favorites for the post as well.

If nominated, Gorsuch faces hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee and the full Senate before taking a spot on the High Court. If confirmed, he will replace the late conservative Justice Antonin Scalia, who passed away in February 2016.

Gorsuch, 49, is a U.S. Circuit Judge for the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Democrats have vowed to fight the appointment.

Throughout his candidacy, Trump emphasized the shaping of the Supreme Court a central part of his platform.

"We have a very clear choice in this election. The freedoms we cherish and the constitutional values and principles our country was founded on are in jeopardy. The responsibility is greater than ever to protect and uphold these freedoms and I will appoint justices, who like Justice Scalia, will protect our liberty with the highest regard for the Constitution," Trump said.

Who is Neil Gorsuch?

A native of Denver, Colorado, Gorsuch comes from a political family. His mother, Ann Gorsuch Burford, was the first female head of the Environmental Protection Agency, serving under President Ronald Reagan.

Gorsuch is a graduate of Columbia University, earning his law degree from Harvard Law in 1991. He went on to receive a Doctor of Philosophy in Law degree from Oxford University.

A former U.S. Appeals Court and Supreme Court clerk, Gorsuch spent 10 years in private practice in Washington, D.C. In 2005, he was named the principal deputy to Associate Attorney General Robert McCallum at the U.S. Department of Justice.

In 2006, President George W. Bush nominated Gorsuch to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit. He was approved by a voice vote in the U.S. Senate.

His is considered a strong judicial supporter of religious freedoms and supporter of socially conservative causes.