The top attorney for one of the largest US labor unions on Tuesday won US Senate approval for a seat on the 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals, making her the first openly LGBTQ judge to serve on the Richmond, Virginia-based court.
The Democratic-led Senate on a 50-47 vote confirmed Nicole Berner, the Service Employees International Union’s general counsel, with Republicans opposing her citing her advocacy against right-to-work laws and for liberal causes.
Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia crossed party lines to vote against Berner, as the moderate has done with some of Democratic President Joe Biden’s other