MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Obama nominates Latino woman to Supreme Court

President Barack Obama during the press conference with Ms. Sonia Sotomayor

President Barack Obama has nominated Sonia Sotomayor to serve on the country's Supreme Court. Ms Sotomayor, 54, who has now to be approved by a Senate vote, would be the first Hispanic to take the position.

She would replace Justice David Souter, who announced his retirement from the top US court earlier this month.

Obama said he had chosen Ms Sotomayor after an “exhaustive” process, and paid tribute to her as an “inspiring woman”. He said she would bring a “depth of experience and a breadth of perspective” to the role.

In an emotional acceptance speech, Ms Sotomayor said her heart was “bursting with gratitude”.

“I am an ordinary person blessed with extraordinary opportunities and experiences - today is one of those experiences,” she said.

If approved by the Senate, Ms Sotomayor would join Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg as the second woman on the current Supreme Court.

The BBC's Richard Lister, in Washington, says it appears likely she will be confirmed by the Senate - but only after some tough questioning during the confirmation process.

Conservative activists have already challenged comments she made a few years ago that a judge should not dismiss their own gender or ethnicity in deciding cases, our correspondent says.

Mitch McConnell, leader of the Republicans in the chamber, said his colleagues would treat Ms Sotomayor fairly, but stressed that the Senate should not be a “rubber stamp”.

“We will thoroughly examine her record to ensure she understands that the role of a jurist in our democracy is to apply the law even-handedly, despite their own feelings or personal or political preferences,” he said.

White House officials told the Associated Press that Ms Sotomayor would bring more judicial experience to the Supreme Court than any other justice confirmed in the past 70 years.

Mr Obama had stressed the need to appoint a justice who had life experience as well as legal capabilities.

Ms Sotomayor was raised on a housing estate in the Bronx - in one of New York City's most deprived areas. She is said to have been inspired by the Perry Mason TV series to become a judge, and was educated at both Princeton and Yale.

She has been nominated to serve as a judge by both Republican and Democrat presidents.

In 1991, George H W Bush named her a district judge and his successor in the White House, Bill Clinton, nominated her to the circuit court in 1997.

The Supreme Court is the highest court in the US, and has the authority to strike down any state or federal law it deems unconstitutional.

Each of the nine Supreme Court justices is nominated to the post for life.

Of the incumbents, four are regarded as liberal, four as conservative and one is seen as unaligned. If appointed, Ms Sotomayor is expected to be on the liberal wing - leaving the political balance unchanged as Mr Souter is also a liberal.