Sen. Tim Scott Timothy (Tim) Eugene ScottAuthor Ryan Girdusky: RNC worked best when highlighting 'regular people' as opposed to 'standard Republicans' Now is the time to renew our focus on students and their futures GOP lobbyists pleasantly surprised by Republican convention MORE (R-S.C.) said Thursday that he will oppose Thomas Farr, a controversial district court nominee from President Trump Donald John TrumpSteele Dossier sub-source was subject of FBI counterintelligence probe Pelosi slams Trump executive order on pre-existing conditions: It 'isn't worth the paper it's signed on' Trump 'no longer angry' at Romney because of Supreme Court stance MORE, denying him the votes to be confirmed.

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“This afternoon I concluded that I could not support Mr. Farr’s nomination," Scott said in a statement first reported by The State, a South Carolina newspaper.

With Scott as a "no" vote, Farr, who was nominated to be a judge in the Eastern District of North Carolina, will not have the 50 votes required for Vice President Pence break a tie, as he did Wednesday to get Farr around a procedural hurdle.

In addition to Scott, every Democrat as well as Sen. Jeff Flake Jeffrey (Jeff) Lane FlakeHow fast population growth made Arizona a swing state Jeff Flake: Republicans 'should hold the same position' on SCOTUS vacancy as 2016 Republican former Michigan governor says he's voting for Biden MORE (R-Ariz.) are expected to oppose Farr. Flake is voting "no" on every judicial nominee until he gets a vote on legislation to protect special counsel Robert Mueller Robert (Bob) MuellerCNN's Toobin warns McCabe is in 'perilous condition' with emboldened Trump CNN anchor rips Trump over Stone while evoking Clinton-Lynch tarmac meeting The Hill's 12:30 Report: New Hampshire fallout MORE from being fired.

Flake told NBC News and other outlets on Thursday that he is opposing Farr "regardless" of the stalemate on the Mueller legislation, saying the "questions with regard to the Jesse Helms letter have never been answered to my satisfaction."

GOP Sens. Lisa Murkowski Lisa Ann MurkowskiOVERNIGHT ENERGY: House passes sweeping clean energy bill | Pebble Mine CEO resigns over secretly recorded comments about government officials | Corporations roll out climate goals amid growing pressure to deliver The Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by Facebook - Trump previews SCOTUS nominee as 'totally brilliant' Abortion stirs GOP tensions in Supreme Court fight MORE (Alaska) and Susan Collins Susan Margaret CollinsThe Hill's Campaign Report: Trump faces backlash after not committing to peaceful transition of power Billionaire who donated to Trump in 2016 donates to Biden Credit union group to spend million on Senate, House races MORE (Maine) both indicated to reporters that they were on the fence about Farr, after voting to advance him on Wednesday, suggesting his nomination could have faced further trouble among Senate Republicans.

But Scott was considered the vote to watch on Farr's nomination. He waited roughly half an hour on Wednesday before providing the 50th vote to let Pence break a tie and advance Farr's nomination and stressed to reporters afterward that he had not made a final decision on confirming him.

The White House didn't immediately respond to a request for comment about whether it would withdraw the nomination in the wake of Farr not having the votes to be confirmed.

Farr’s nomination drew intense opposition from Democrats and their outside group allies, who warn that, if confirmed, he’ll use his position as a federal judge to rule against minorities.

Scott, the Senate's only black Republican, pointed to a 1990s Justice Department investigation into Jesse Helm's Senate campaign for mailing postcards to more than 120,000 North Carolinians, most of whom were black voters, suggesting they were ineligible to vote and could be prosecuted for voter fraud.

The Washington Post published a memo this week that outlined the Justice Department's case. Scott cited the memo as influential to his decision to oppose Farr.

"This week, a Department of Justice memo written under President George H.W. Bush was released that shed new light on Mr. Farr’s activities. This, in turn, created more concerns," Scott said in a statement.

He added that he is "ready and willing to support strong candidates for our judicial vacancies that do not have lingering concerns about issues that could affect their decision-making process as a federal judge, and I am proud that Senate Republicans have confirmed judges at a historical rate over the past two years."

Farr — in response to questions from Sen. Dianne Feinstein Dianne Emiel FeinsteinTrump faces tricky choice on Supreme Court pick The Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by Facebook - Trump previews SCOTUS nominee as 'totally brilliant' Abortion stirs GOP tensions in Supreme Court fight MORE (Calif.), the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee — said he did was not involved in crafting the postcards.

“I was not aware that the cards had been sent until they had been sent and the manager of the Helms Committee received a letter about the cards from the Voting Rights Section of the United States Department of Justice. The manager of the Helms Committee then called me for legal advice,” he added in his written responses to questions from the Judiciary Committee.

Farr was also part of a group of lawyers hired to defend congressional and legislative boundaries approved by the North Carolina legislature, some of which were later struck down in federal court.

It's not the first time Scott has opposed a Trump nominee over racial concerns.

Scott announced in July that he would oppose the circuit court nomination of Ryan Bounds, who faced criticism because of controversial college writings that voiced skepticism about race-focused groups and questioned the need for diversity training. Bounds's nomination was quickly withdrawn in the wake of Scott's opposition.

Scott, this week, warned that the Republican Party is not doing enough to bridge the country's racial divide.

"We're not doing a very good job of avoiding the obvious potholes on race in America and we ought to be more sensitive," Scott said, adding that there were picks other than Farr for the district court seat.

Democrats and outside groups immediately praised Scott's decision. Democrats nixed the 60-vote filibuster for lower court nominees in 2013, leaving them unable to block Trump's picks on their own.

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer Chuck SchumerPelosi slams Trump executive order on pre-existing conditions: It 'isn't worth the paper it's signed on' 3 reasons why Biden is misreading the politics of court packing Cruz blocks amended resolution honoring Ginsburg over language about her dying wish MORE (D-N.Y.) and other members of his caucus have used press conferences and several floor speech this week to try to convince enough Republican senators to oppose Farr.

“Senator Tim Scott has done a courageous thing, and he’s done the right thing. Thomas Farr has been involved in the sordid practice of voter suppression for decades and never should have been nominated, let alone confirmed to the bench. Thankfully, he won’t be," Schumer said in a statement.