Officials celebrate Wynn's confirmation

North Carolina elected officials cheered the confirmation to the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals of Judge Jim Wynn.

Wynn was first nominated for the court in 1999. His confirmation comes after months of being held up in the U.S. Senate by procedural moves.

Wynn currently serves on the N.C. Court of Appeals. He was first nominated for higher court under President Bill Clinton, but he was blocked by Sen. Jesse Helms.

"His new seat on the 4th Circuit, however long overdue, is a much-deserved promotion in his distinguished judicial career," said Gov. Bev Perdue, a Democrat.

U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan, a Greensboro Democrat, noted that the seat has been open on the court since 1994.

"Tonight, North Carolina won because Jim Wynn, a highly qualified, experienced and fair-minded judge, will be serving on the 4th Circuit," she said. "Eleven years ago today Judge Jim Wynn was first nominated to serve on the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. Unfortunately, that nomination was blocked by partisan politics."

In his statement, U.S. Sen. Richard Burr, a Winston-Salem Republican, noted that under President George W. Bush, Democrats had blocked confirmation of nominees to the 4th Circuit.

"After the treatment some of these nominees were subjected to, it is a wonder that others are still willing to step forward to put themselves through the nominations process," Burr said. "I was happy to support this highly qualified nominee, and to work to finally fill this seat."

Perdue, Burr and Hagan agreed in their support for Judge Al Diaz, a Charlotte judge who has also been nominated for a seat on the 4th Circuit.