Two Iowa federal judge nominees will get floor vote in February

Sen. Chuck Grassley said Friday that two Iowa judges nominated as the next federal judges in the state's Northern and Southern District Courts will be voted on by the full Senate early next year.

Earlier this week, both the Republican and Democratic leaders made an agreement that five judicial nominees, including Leonard Strand of Sioux City, and Rebecca Ebinger of Des Moines, will be voted on early next year.

Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell announced after the agreement that he plans to schedule each of these nominations for floor consideration and a vote prior to the President's Day recess in February.

The other nominees who will receive votes are Luis Restrepo of Pennsylvania, Wilhelmina Wright of Minnesota, and John Vazquez of New Jersey. Grassley, as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, helped lead the effort to reach the agreement.

'These two Iowans are uniquely qualified to be federal judges and have exceptional credentials,” Grassley said in a statement. 'I'm glad they will be voted on by the full Senate in short order.”

Carl Tobias, a University of Richmond School of Law professor and federal judiciary expert, said this week he had no doubt Grassley argued strenuously for the prompt vote on the Iowa judges because they were both behind other nominees, many of which who have been waiting for a vote longer than Ebinger and Strand. Tobias had predicted the Iowa judges may not get vote until 2017 but the agreement changed the timeline, at least, for this group of five.

Grassley recommended Strand and Ebinger to the White House after an extensive effort by a Judicial Selection Commission that Grassley formed after two judges announced their intention to take senior status. The commission was comprised of highly qualified members of the Iowa legal community.

Grassley previously said 11 applicants were then selected to participate in a lengthy second interview. The commission then made recommendations to Grassley, who consulted with Sen. Joni Ernst, as he reviewed the candidates and their qualifications before submitting his recommendations to the White House.

Strand currently serves as a U.S. magistrate in the Northern District. He graduated first in his class from the College of Law at the University of Iowa and brings extensive experience in civil litigation from private practice in Cedar Rapids.

Ebinger is a state district judge in Polk County. She graduated from Yale Law School, was an assistant U.S. attorney in both the Northern and Southern Districts of Iowa, and clerked for Judge Michael J. Melloy of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.