1st Black chief judge for New York state confirmed

FILE — Rowan D. Wilson, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul's Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals nominee, gives testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee, April 17, 2023, in Albany, N.Y. New York's Senate confirmed Wilson as the state's first Black chief judge Tuesday, April 18, 2023, two months after lawmakers dealt Gov. Kathy Hochul a political defeat by rejecting her initial nominee for the top court post. (AP Photo/Hans Pennink, File)

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York’s Senate confirmed Rowan Wilson as the state’s first Black chief judge Tuesday, two months after lawmakers dealt Gov. Kathy Hochul a political defeat by rejecting her initial nominee for the top court post.

Wilson has been an associate judge of the Court of Appeals, New York's highest court, since 2017. Hochul tapped him to lead the seven-member high court and oversee the state’s judicial system. The confirmation vote caps months of conflict between Hochul and her fellow Democrats in control of the Senate over the direction of the court.

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