Makes a significant contribution to substantive representation, and examines the various political identities of justices in the American political system.

1. Qualification, selection, and retirement characteristics of women, minorities, and minority women state Supreme Court judges Nancy Bays Arrington; 2. Latinas and the Texas judiciary: the intersection of race, gender, and judiciary Sharon A. Navarro; 3. Structural and partisan influences on the ascension of women of color to state appellate courts Barbara L. Graham and Adriano Udani; 4. LGBT judges in the US Donald Haider-Markel and Patrick Gauding; 5. Race, gender, and the battle to seat Constance Baker Motley, the first black woman appoint to the federal bench Taneisha Nicole Means; 6. Diversity abound: will federal judicial appointees mirror a changing citizenry? Shenita Brazelton and LaTasha Chaffin; 7. Marked for excellence: race, gender, and the treatment of Supreme Court-worthy nominees to the US courts of appeals Lisa M. Holmes; 8. Navigating rising to the top: Justice Sotomayor Samantha L. Hernandez.