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Obama taps Washington outsider as attorney general

FILE- In this April 28, 2014 file photo, Loretta Lynch, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York speaks during a news conference in New York. President Obama chose Loretta Lynch as attorney general on Friday, Nov. 7, 2014, which would make her the first black woman in the position. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)
FILE- In this April 28, 2014 file photo, Loretta Lynch, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York speaks during a news conference in New York. President Obama chose Loretta Lynch as attorney general on Friday, Nov. 7, 2014, which would make her the first black woman in the position. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File) FILE- In this April 28, 2014 file photo, Loretta Lynch, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York speaks during a news conference in New York. President Obama chose Loretta Lynch as attorney general on Friday, Nov. 7, 2014, which would make her the first black woman in the position. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

By Associated Press 1 min read

WASHINGTON (AP) – President Barack Obama has chosen federal prosecutor Loretta Lynch to be the next attorney general amid a power shift in the Senate.

Obama plans to announce Lynch’s nomination Saturday in a White House event.

Lynch would be the first black woman in the job. The outgoing attorney general, Eric Holder, served as the first black head of the Justice Department.

White House officials say they will leave it up to Senate leaders to work out the timeline for her confirmation and simply urged it to be as soon as possible.

The 55-year-old Lynch is the U.S. attorney for Eastern District of New York, which covers Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and Long Island. She held the same position under President Bill Clinton.