The Career of Sandra Day O'Connor

Presidential Appointment
O'Connor's successful tenure in the Arizona state senate led to a position as the senate's majority leader, making her the first woman in the United States to hold that position in a state legislature. Despite the historic feat, she left the position in 1974 to run, successfully, for a judicial position in the Maricopa County Superior Court. In 1979, Governor Bruce Babbit appointed her to the Arizona Court of Appeals. Then, in June 1981, after Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart announced his retirement from the position he had held since 1958, President Ronald Reagan nominated her as his replacement.

• Sandra Day O'Connor To Retire