Cynthia Nixon Joins New York’s Judicial Nomination Committee

Progressive activist and actress Cynthia Nixon has joined the committee responsible for selecting New York’s top judges. As reported by the New York Post, Nixon has been appointed to a four-year term on the Commission on Judicial Nomination, which reviews candidates for the state Court of Appeals. The governor can only appoint nominees approved by the commission.

Nixon is an outspoken democratic socialist who ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2018. Her appointment by Chief Judge Rowan Wilson has met with critique from some Republican lawmakers, who argue that including an activist and celebrity without a law degree sends a political message. Her term is set to expire on April 30, 2030.

State Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Anthony Palumbo expressed disappointment to The New York Post, saying, “We have a radical progressive actress without a law degree selecting judges in the state of New York.”

Cynthia Nixon, a native New Yorker, started her acting career at 12 and has maintained a profession as an actor and director for nearly five decades. Her biography on the New York State website highlights her activism in areas such as abortion access, public school funding, LGBTQ equality, and breast cancer awareness. Her 2018 gubernatorial campaign emphasized economic, racial, and gender equality.

Best known for her role as Miranda Hobbes, a lawyer in HBO’s “Sex and the City,” Nixon has also appeared in “The Gilded Age” on HBO. While most commission members are practicing lawyers or government officials, possessing a law degree is not a requirement for appointment.

The commission is described as playing a significant role in state government. Its purpose is to ensure that judges on New York’s highest court, the Court of Appeals, are selected from candidates who enhance the diversity and represent the best qualifications within New York’s community.

Legal analyst Jonathan Turley criticized the appointment, writing, “The New York legal system continues to make a parody of itself. Cynthia Nixon, who played a lawyer on HBO’s Sex and the City, has been appointed to screen and recommend candidates for New York’s highest court.”

Nixon previously lost the 2018 Democratic gubernatorial primary to incumbent Andrew Cuomo in a significant defeat. During her campaign, she embraced her democratic socialist stance, emphasizing that health care, housing, and education should be basic rights.

In recent developments, Nixon supported New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani after his Democratic mayoral primary victory, expressing admiration for him on Instagram.

Fox News Digital’s representative reached out to Nixon’s representatives for comment but did not receive a response.