This Day in History: 0000-08-23
1959 – “Asian American Elected to U.S. Senate for First Time
” Hiram Fong, who was one of Hawaii’s most prominent and successful businessmen at the time, was elected to represent Hawaii in the U.S. Senate. He became the first Asian American elected to the legislative body. He was also the first Asian American to seek the Republican party’s nomination for resident of the United States. Fong was the first in a long line of Asian American elected officials to represent Hawaii, including Daniel Inouye, Daniel Akaka and Mazie Hirono.
May 26, 2009 - "Sonia Sotomayor Nominated for U.S. Supreme Court" President Barack Obama, the nation's first African-American President, nominated Sonia Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court. Once her nomination was confirmed by the U.S. Senate, she became the first Latinx to be appointed to the Supreme Court. Sotomayor is the third woman to serve on the high court. She graduated from Princeton University summa cum laude and went to Yale Law School. At Yale, she served as an editor at the Yale Law Journal.