NC Supreme Court Associate Justice Anita Earls listed as candidate for US Supreme Court

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- North Carolina Supreme Court Associate Justice Anita Earls is on a list of nominees to replace Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer after he announced plans to retire.

President Biden vowed on the campaign trail that he would fill an open position on the Supreme Court with a black woman, and now he has his chance.

Earls, a Durham resident, graduated Magna Cum Laude from Williams, went to Yale Law and joined a private firm in Charlotte in 1988. In 1998, she was appointed by President Clinton as Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Civil Rights Division of the US Department of Justice.

Earls later worked with civil rights activist and attorney Julius Chambers at the UNC Center for Civil Rights.

Earls told ABC11 Wednesday that she saw her name on the list of candidates.

"Of course, I'm honored for the people who watch the court to include me on a list like this and this distinguished list of women. I love the job I have and will continue to serve the people of North Carolina" said Earl.

ABC11 also reached out to prominent Democrat and former Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court, Cheri Beasley. She is currently the lone Democrat running for the U.S. Senate seat in the 2022 election.

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"A vacancy on the Supreme Court presents an opportunity for President Biden to make good on his promise and nominate one of the many talented qualified African American women jurists... I firmly believe that our Supreme Court, like all institutions, must reflect the diversity of our nation," Beasley said.

Beasley told Eyewitness News that she is committed to running for Senate.