Justice will be served.

On Monday, Connecticut governor Dannel P. Malloy nominated Andrew J. McDonald, a current supreme court associate justice and former state representative from Stamford, Conn., to serve as the state’s chief justice, the Connecticut Post reports. If elected, McDonald will be the first openly gay state leader of a supreme court. McDonald has served on the court since 2013.

“Justice McDonald has proven himself to be a consummate, revered jurist who has an exceptional ability to understand, analyze, research, and evaluate legal issues,” Malloy told the Post. “He has a deep understanding of the role and the impact that the justice system has on the everyday lives of Connecticut residents, and the value of ensuring equality and fairness through the court’s many responsibilities.”

Though McDonald would be the first openly gay chief justice of a state in the United States, he would not be the first openly gay US chief justice. That distinction belongs to Maite Oronoz Rodriguez, the lesbian chief justice of the Puerto Rico Supreme Court.

McDonald’s ascension to Connecticut’s Supreme Court comes at a time when more and more LGBTQ people are entering the political sphere, including Virginia’s Danica Roem, the first out transgender state representative.

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