Latino leaders laud White House for heeding calls for more Hispanic judicial nominees by nominating three Latinas to the Federal bench

Contact: 

Chris Lechuga 

915-274-2407 

clechuga@rabengroup.com 

Washington, DC — Yesterday, Latinos for a Fair Judiciary (LFJ) and several of its partners eagerly welcomed the latest slate of federal judicial nominees from the White House that includes the nomination of three prominent Latinas to U.S. District Court seats — Judge Ruth Bermudez Montenegro to the Southern District of California; Evelyn Padin to the District of New Jersey; and Judge Cristina D. Silva to the District of Nevada. Now, the Senate must move quickly to confirm these and other highly qualified diverse candidates in order to modernize the federal judiciary to reflect the changing demographics of the population our courts serve. 

“We are thrilled that President Biden has nominated three exceptional Latinas to the federal judiciary. These nominations are a positive sign of movement towards a federal judiciary that is representative of the diverse communities that come before our courts,” said Carlos Bollar, National President of the Hispanic National Bar Association. “The HNBA is looking forward to working with the White House and Senate to identify, vet, and endorse qualified judicial nominees to fill the remaining vacancies in the federal court system.” 

This most recent set of nominations brings the Biden administration’s total number of Latino federal judicial nominees to fourteen — representing approximately 23% of the current White House’s slate of judicial nominations. Notably, if confirmed, Evelyn Padin would be just the second Latina federal judge serving on the District Court of New Jersey. Similarly, Judge Cristina D. Silva would be only the third Hispanic judge to ever serve on the District Court of Nevada. 

“This latest set of nominations is an important milestone in continuing to make up for the severe under-inclusion of Latinos in the Trumpian battery of judicial appointments,” said Thomas A. Saenz, MALDEF president and general counsel. “However, the journey is long and the ground to make up significant; the judiciary, including many judges who will serve for decades to come, should better reflect the significant and growing Latino population, which, according to

the Census, and despite a significant undercount, accounted for over half of the nation’s total population growth in the last decade.” 

Although this week’s nominations are another step in the right direction, there is a long way to go to make up for the fact that only six percent of all federal judges were Latino as of 2020, despite the fact that Latinos comprise over 18 percent of the population and accounted for more than half of the country’s population growth, according to the 2020 census. LFJ strongly urges Senators to quickly submit potential nominees to the White House, especially in states that have seen growth in Latino populations in the past decade to address these and other disparities. 

“We commend the addition of three more Latinas to the list of judicial nominees. However, we acknowledge that there is progress to be made to ensure that courts remedy the lack of Latinos and people of color on the federal bench.” said Lourdes M. Rosado, President & General Counsel of LatinoJustice. “Tuesday's elections are a reminder of the swift action that needs to take place to ensure we confirm the remaining nominees." 

Yesterday’s judicial nominations come a day after a tough election night for Democrats, likely signaling a tumultuous road ahead for the party and the Biden Administration as they look toward the 2022 midterm election. The election results should also spur the White House and Democratic-controlled Senate to appoint more federal judges that reflect the nation's new demographic reality before the shrinking window of opportunity closes. This is particularly the case for states like California, New York, and Pennsylvania — which have large Latino populations and several judicial openings, along with Florida and Texas federal courts, which are severely lacking in Latino representation, despite being home to a large and impressive talent pool of qualified Latino legal professionals. 

“We are pleased and thankful that the White House heard our calls for more Latino judicial representation by nominating three Latinas to serve the Hispanic-heavy populations of California, New Jersey, and Nevada,” said Andrea Nill Sanchez, Director of Latinos for a Fair Judiciary. “But we also have a renewed sense of urgency and urge the White House and Senate to accelerate their efforts to bring equal representation to the federal bench. This includes calling on Senators to expedite the process of submitting names for judicial consideration to the White House with a focus on building a more balanced and diverse judiciary that includes Latino perspectives — particularly in the Latino-heavy states of California, New York, Pennsylvania, Florida, and Texas.” 

For more information about LFJ, visit www.latinosforafairjudiciary.org. 

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Latinos for a Fair Judiciary (LFJ) provides Latino leaders across the nation a platform and voice in matters related to our nation’s judicial system. LFJ is an unaffiliated, non-partisan, independent network of elected officials, legal, civil rights, labor, academic and political leaders who care deeply about the impact that the Supreme Court has on the Latino community. Our

mission is to raise public awareness around the pressing legal issues Latinos are facing and call attention to the significance of the Supreme Court.