A Monroe County Court judge is making history as she is officially set to become New York state's next federal judge.

The U.S. Senate voted to confirm Meredith Vacca's nomination to serve on the Western District of New York's federal court.

Vacca will be the first Asian American and first woman of color to serve as a judge in that district.

It's a big moment for Western New York, as Vacca is both a Rochester native, a University at Buffalo law graduate and a former member of the Monroe County District Attorney's Office. She's served as an acting state Supreme Court justice since January 2023.

“Judge Vacca has spent over 15 years of her career fighting for vulnerable New Yorkers," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement. "During her tenure as an attorney, prosecutor, and a judge in Western New York, she has developed a rare institutional knowledge of our state’s and country’s laws. Ms. Vacca is highly qualified, compassionate, tough and legally astute and I am proud to have recommended her to the federal bench.”