Sharon B. Majors-Lewis, 60

Judicial appointments secretary

A former San Diego prosecutor, Majors-Lewis committed herself to working to diversify the bench in California when Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed her judicial appointments secretary in early 2007. Major-Lewis' promise appears to be paying off. Since she took the job, more and more woman and minorities have applied for judgeships. In 2008 (the 2009 judicial applicant data won't be released for a few more months), 31 percent of the applicant pool was made up of minorities, up 2 percent from 2006.