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Sandra Day O’Connor

The Honorable
Sandra Day O'Connor
Sandra Day O'Connor.jpg
23rd Chancellor of the College of William and Mary
In office
October 4, 2005 – February 3, 2012
President Gene Nichol
Preceded by Henry Kissinger
Succeeded by Robert Gates
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
In office
September 25, 1981 – January 31, 2006
Nominated by Ronald Reagan
Preceded by Potter Stewart
Succeeded by Samuel Alito
Judge of the Arizona Court of Appeals for Division One
In office
December 1979 – September 25, 1981
Nominated by Bruce Babbitt
Preceded by Mary Schroeder
Succeeded by Sarah D. Grant
Member of the Arizona Senate
from the 24th district
In office
January 8, 1973 – January 13, 1975
Preceded by Howard S. Baldwin
Succeeded by John Pritzlaff
Member of the Arizona Senate
from the 20th district
In office
January 11, 1971 – January 8, 1973
Preceded by Constituency established
Succeeded by Bess Stinson
Member of the Arizona Senate
from the 8-E district
In office
October 30, 1969 – January 11, 1971
Preceded by Isabel Burgess
Succeeded by Constituency abolished
Personal details
Born Sandra Day
(1930-03-26) March 26, 1930 (age 86)
El Paso, Texas, U.S.
Political party Republican
Spouse(s) John O'Connor (1952–2009)
Children 3
Education Stanford University (BA, LLB)
Signature

Sandra Day O'Connor (born March 26, 1930) is a retired associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, serving from her appointment in 1981 by Ronald Reagan until her retirement in 2006. She was the first woman to serve as a Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.

Prior to O'Connor's tenure on the Court, she was an elected official and judge in Arizona serving as the first female Majority Leader of a state senate as the Republican leader in the Arizona Senate. On July 1, 2005, she announced her intention to retire effective upon the confirmation of a successor.Samuel Alito was nominated to take her seat in October 2005, and joined the Court on January 31, 2006.

Considered a federalist and a Moderate Republican, O'Connor tended to approach each case narrowly without arguing for sweeping precedents. She most frequently sided with the court's conservative bloc, although in the latter years of her tenure, she was regarded as having the swing opinion in many cases. Her unanimous confirmation by the Senate in 1981 was supported by most conservatives, led by Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater, and liberals, including Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy and women's rights groups like the National Organization for Women.

O'Connor was Chancellor of The College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, and served on the board of trustees of the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She also served on the Board of Trustees for Colonial Williamsburg. Several publications have named O'Connor among the most powerful women in the world. On August 12, 2009, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor of the United States, by President Barack Obama.


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