Cruz — who has not yet formally announced his opposition — could, in theory stage a symbolic filibuster on the Senate floor to delay the confirmation process, but Lynch now appears on the glide path to confirmation.

During the first day of her two-day hearings Wednesday, Lynch successfully avoided any major missteps, carefully endorsing the broad notions of many of Obama’s most controversial policies while not being drawn into rhetorical traps set by Republicans.

According to Republicans and Democrats, part of Lynch’s success has been her outreach efforts to lawmakers in both parties, which has gone a long way towards securing support from Republicans.