Republican New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie moved to make the state’s top court more diverse this week, nominating two new justices — an Asian-American and an openly gay African-American.
Christie announced Monday he was nominating Phillip Kwon and Bruce Harris, the out Republican mayor of Chatham, for two open seats on the New Jersey Supreme Court.
The New Jersey Senate needs to confirm both nominees. If approved, New Jersey would have its first gay or Asian-American Supreme Court justices.
Kwon is the state’s First Assistant Attorney General, and Harris has helmed city government in the North Jersey locale since November in an election that was in itself historic: He is believed to the be the first and only out, black Republican mayor in the nation.
Harris, an attorney with Greenberg Traurig, would be the state’s third African-American justice and would join a small group of just six other openly LGBT individuals who serve on state-level supreme courts.
He was joined by his partner during Christie’s press conference to announce the nominations this week.
Christie heralded the momentous nature of the nominations.
“While these two men have stellar résumés and are respected throughout the legal communities for what they have accomplished as lawyers, these nominations are historic for another reason,” the governor said. “Not only do their different backgrounds and career paths bring distinctive and important perspectives to the court, Bruce and Phil also capture our state’s diversity.”
Christie went on to say it was an “honor” to nominate the state’s first openly gay justice.
“This is an important moment in our state’s history, in our country’s history, that signals just how far we all have come,” he said.
Joe Solmonese, president of Human Rights Campaign, welcomed the news.
“We congratulate Bruce Harris on his nomination to the highest court in New Jersey and applaud Gov. Christie for choosing a highly qualified candidate,” he said. “It sends a powerful message that LGBT people can and do contribute to our communities in a variety of capacities. Courts around the country are greatly lacking in LGBT diversity and with thousands of qualified LGBT attorneys in the U.S., we look forward to the day when our courts better reflect the composition of our country.”
Harris, 61, served on Chatham Borough council from 2004 until last year, and was president of the governing body from 2007 onward.
At Greenberg, he specializes in commercial- and asset-lending law, as well as real-estate financing. Harris, a 1992 graduate of Yale Law School, was recently listed in The Best Lawyers in America.
From 1995-2003 he was a trustee of The Eric Johnson House Inc., a transitional-housing program for HIV/AIDS patients, and served as president of the organization from 1996-2001.
Garden State Equality executive director Steven Goldstein noted that Harris is “eminently qualified” for the position.
While Goldstein praised Christie for the nomination — and for his willingness to work with the LGBT community on other issues — he did note that this latest development likely hasn’t swayed the governor’s stance on the proposed marriage-equality bill, which he has pledged to veto.
“I recognize, and caution everyone, that it would be unwise to read any change here in the governor’s position on marriage equality; he has said in past months and years that he would veto the bill, and we take him at his word,” Goldstein said. “But, right now, that doesn’t mean we should not give credit where credit is due. Today, the governor has made civil-rights history, and on behalf of all of us at Garden State Equality, I extend to him our most profound appreciation.”