(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) hailed the White House’s official nomination of Judge Salvador Mendoza, Jr. to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The announcement comes after Senator Murray’s recommendation of Judge Mendoza to the White House.
“As the son of farmworkers, Judge Mendoza will bring an important perspective to one of the most powerful and consequential federal courts in this country,” said Senator Murray. “As someone who helped establish the first Drug Court in Benton and Franklin counties, he has been a trailblazer in building a more fair and just legal system for everyone—not just the wealthy and powerful. Judge Mendoza is a lifelong Washington state resident—someone who has rightfully earned the respect of both Democrats and Republicans for his judgment and even-handed application of the law after many years of public service. I was proud to recommend Judge Mendoza to the White House, and I know people in Washington state will be able to count on him to respect every party that enters his courtroom and to deliver a fair judgment for everyone that appears before him.”
Judge Salvador Mendoza, Jr. has served as a U.S. District Court Judge for the Eastern District of Washington since 2014—he was confirmed by the full Senate for this role by a bipartisan vote of 92-4. Judge Mendoza previously served as a Washington State Superior Court Judge from 2013 to 2014. From 1999 to 2013, Judge Mendoza was a solo practitioner, then president, of a small law firm in Eastern Washington, and he also served as a judge pro tempore on various local courts. From 1998 to 1999, Judge Mendoza served as a Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for the Franklin County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, and from 1997 to 1998, he was an Assistant Attorney General in the Office of the Washington State Attorney General.
Judge Mendoza’s parents immigrated to the United States from Mexico working as farm laborers, maids, and factory workers to build a better life for their family—and as a child, Judge Mendoza worked as a migrant farmworker. He went on to receive his B.A. from the University of Washington in 1994, and his J.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law in 1997. Judge Mendoza would be the first Latino from Washington state to serve on the Ninth Circuit Court bench.
Senator Murray has been a strong advocate for the confirmation of highly-qualified judicial nominees who reflect the diversity of communities in Washington state and America, pushing for greater professional diversity on the federal bench in particular. Since the start of this Congress, Senator Murray has secured the lifetime appointments of five highly qualified candidates as federal district court judges in Washington state.
Most recently, Senator Murray secured the confirmations of Tana Lin, Washington state’s first ever Asian American federal judge and a former public defender and civil rights lawyer; Lauren King, a tribal law expert who is serving as Washington state’s first ever Native American federal judge; David Estudillo, the son of Mexican immigrants and a former immigration attorney; and Kit Dimke who is serving in the Eastern District of Washington from the Spokane Courthouse. Senator Murray is currently pushing to confirm Tiffany Cartwright, a leading civil rights lawyer after recently securing the confirmation of John Chun, who will be the first Asian American man to serve as a federal judge in Washington state.
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