Senate confirms Loretta Lynch as attorney general

Loretta Lynch

The Senate on Thursday voted 56-43 to confirm Loretta Lynch as the next attorney general, making her the first African-American woman to hold the position. Lynch replaces Attorney General Eric Holder, who in September announced he would step down once a successor was in place.

Though President Obama nominated Lynch late last year, Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) put her confirmation on hold amid a partisan squabble over a human trafficking bill. The Senate unanimously signed off on a bipartisan compromise on the trafficking legislation Wednesday, finally clearing the way for Thursday's vote on Lynch. The protracted hold meant Lynch's confirmation was the third-longest in U.S. history for an attorney general nominee, according to The New York Times.

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Jon Terbush

Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.