Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs has appointed Maria Elena Cruz to the Arizona Supreme Court. The state appellate judge from rural Yuma County will become the first Latina and the first Black person chosen for the state’s high court.

Gov. Katie Hobbs on Monday placed the first Black and Hispanic woman on the Arizona Supreme Court. The governor chose Maria Elena Cruz, now a judge on the Court of Appeals, from among the five names submitted by the Commission on Appellate Court Appointments. By law, Hobbs was required to choose from that list.