Sonia Sotomayor Supreme Court nomination Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. The seat was filled by Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr. of the Third Circuit. Since Barack Obama's election, there had been speculation that Sotomayor could be a leading candidate for the Supreme Court seat of Justice David Souter, or for any opening on the Court during Obama's term. On April 9, 2009, Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand wrote a joint letter to President Obama urging him to appoint Sotomayor, or alternatively Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, to the Supreme Court if a vacancy should arise on the Court during his term.<ref name="Schumer/Gillibrand"></ref> On April 30,
Sonia Sotomayor Puertorriqueña" organization, which served as a social and political hub and sought more opportunities for Puerto Rican students. She worked in the admissions office, traveling to high schools and lobbying on behalf of her best prospects. As an activist, Sotomayor focused on faculty hiring and curriculum, since Princeton did not have a single full-time Latino professor nor any class on Latin American studies. A meeting with university president William G. Bowen in her sophomore year saw no results, leading to Sotomayor's saying in a "New York Times" story at the time that "Princeton is following a policy of benign neutrality