A University of Iowa graduate has become the first openly gay man to be confirmed as a federal judge.

The U.S. Senate on Tuesday confirmed the appointment of J. Paul Oetken to a federal bench in Manhattan. President Obama nominated Oetken to the court earlier this year.

Oetken went to high school in Cedar Rapids before graduating from the UI and then Yale Law School.

His résumé also includes stints as a clerk in the U.S. Supreme Court and as an associate White House counsel in the Clinton administration.

Oetken’s appointment was confirmed by the Senate 80-13. Both Sens. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, and Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, voted in favor.

— by Adam B Sullivan