Semper inches toward Senate confirmation for federal judgeship

One of President Joe Biden’s nominees for a seat on the U.S. District Court for New Jersey is headed toward a confirmation vote by the United States Senate.

On Monday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer presented a cloture motion in the Senate to set up a vote on Jamel Semper, an Assistant U.S. Attorney who was picked for a federal judgeship in September.

Semper breezed through a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing a few weeks later and received the panel’s approval last month.

The New Jerseyan was one of four candidates for the federal bench on Schumer’s list.

If confirmed, Semper would replace John Michael Vazquez, who stepped down in September at age 53.

Another Biden nominee, U.S. Magistrate Judge Edward Kiel, appeared before the Judiciary on November 1.

Semper, 41, is the deputy chief of the criminal division at the U.S. Attorney’s office.  He spent more than ten years as a prosecutor in Union and Essex counties before becoming an Assistant U.S. Attorney in 2018.

After Biden’s election, Semper had been short-listed as a candidate for U.S. Attorney and was a finalist for the state attorney general post that went to Matt Platkin in 2022.  He was chief of the Organized Crime and Gangs section in the U.S. Attorney’s office.