Ed Chen to Finally Get a Floor Vote in Senate
5 May
After waiting more than 600 days for a confirmation vote, U.S. District Court nominee Edward M. Chen will finally get a floor vote in the Senate. The Senate agreed today to end the gridlock preventing an up-or-down vote on Judge Chen’s nomination. The vote will likely take place sometime the week of May 9.
Senator Dianne Feinstein of California has been a great champion of Judge Chen’s nomination and worked diligently to bring this nomination to a vote.
The Senator on Monday issued a statement in recognition of Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month, in which she mentioned Judge Chen and her commitment to diversity in the courts:
I also want to praise the leadership and hard work of the Asian Pacific American legal community. Since the beginning of 2009, we have made significant progress in our work to diversify federal courts. Six new Asian Pacific American judges have been confirmed to the federal bench. These include U.S. District Judges Jacqueline Nguyen and Dolly Gee in Los Angeles and U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose. Two highly qualified nominees still await votes – Professor Goodwin Liu, nominated for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and U.S. Magistrate Judge Edward Chen, nominated for the U.S. District Court in San Francisco. I will continue to do what I can to further diversify the judiciary and ensure that qualified Asian Pacific American judges are nominated and confirmed to the federal bench.
Judge Chen, the longest waiting nominee of this administration, has received the highest rating possible by the American Bar Association and enjoys broad support the bar, law enforcement, former prosecutors, and community groups.
