The Governor’s pick to be the next Chief Justice, Tani Cantil-Sakauye, has been confirmed by the commission on judicial appointments today.  The commission consists of three persons:   Chief Justice Ron George, Attorney General Jerry Brown, and Senior Appellate Justice Joan Dempsey Klein.  

Of course, this being California, that is hardly the end of it.  She will next go before the voters in a Yes/No referendum on the November ballot.  If elected, she will serve a 12 year term.  

Cantil-Sakauye would be the first Asian Chief Justice, as well as the first Filipina on the court.  As a jurist, she is considered to be something of a moderate, but as far as the larger social issues of the day, we will have to wait and see where she stands.

Update: My mistake on the approving body. It was the commission on judicial appointments, not the senate.