California Gov. Newsom picks replacement for the late Dianne Feinstein, but the battle for that Senate seat is heating up
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is sometimes mentioned as a possible future presidential contender, resolved a rather thorny political dilemma when he announced, just two days after the death of longtime Sen. Dianne Feinstein, that he will appoint Laphonza Butler to fill her seat for the remainder of her term.
Feinstein died Sept. 28 at the age of 90, and had been failing both physically and mentally, for some time. Her staff frequently had to tell her how to vote, both on the Senate floor and in committee. But she had served in the U.S. Senate for 31 years, longer than any other woman in history, and had been a strong voice for abortion rights, gun control and environmental protection. She was the author of the assault weapons ban that Bill Clinton signed into law in 1994, which expired 10 years later.
When San Francisco Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk, one of America’s first openly gay politicians, were assassinated by a former colleague in 1978, Feinstein was the first to find Milk’s body and attempted to save his life. That brutal experience apparently stayed with her, as she rose to serve as mayor herself and was subsequently elected to the Senate in 1992.
When Feinstein was clearly failing, Newsom promised to appoint a Black woman to succeed her in the event that she resigned (which she was unwilling to do) or passed away. There hasn't been a Black woman in the Senate since Kamala Harris gave up her seat to become vice president, but Newsom had chosen a Latino man, California Secretary of State Alex Padilla, to replace Harris.
Newsom is in a unique spot, getting to hand-pick both California senators in a three-year period, but Feinstein’s seat was up for election next year anyway, and three strong Democratic candidates (Adam Schiff, Katie Porter, and Barbara Lee, all currently serving in the House) are already campaigning vigorously for the position, and raising millions of dollars.
It is unclear whether Laphonza Butler will run for the seat to which she is being appointed. At one point, Newsom (seen above in a California government photo posted in wikimedia commons) clarified that he would not appoint one of the currently active candidates for the seat, but would choose a Black woman to serve for one year as a “placeholder.”
Butler has never held elective office before, and would be starting with limited name recognition and a total lack of funds in America’s most populous (and presumably expensive) state to wage a campaign. She is currently the head of EMILY’s List (“early money is like yeast”), which has raised money to support women running for state and federal office for many years.
Butler previously served as a union leader (SEIU Local 2015) and as a regent for the University of California, and was the director of policy for Airbnb. She will also be California's first openly gay Senator. Significantly, Butler is currently living, and registered to vote, in Maryland, so she must quickly move back to her native California and register to vote there to qualify for this appointment.
That move is reminiscent of Dick Cheney, who quickly moved from Texas to his native Wyoming so that George W. Bush could select him as his vice presidential running mate.
The appointment of Butler must infuriate Barbara Lee, who is the only Black woman currently running for Feinstein’s seat, having represented Berkeley and Oakland in the House since 1998. Lee has chaired the Congressional Black Caucus, has fought vigorously to cut Pentagon spending, and was probably the most left-wing member of the House until “Squad” members Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Cori Bush, and Jamaal Bowman (currently in hot water for pulling the fire alarm hours before Congress avoided shutting down the government) were elected in recent years.
Lee figured that Newsom should keep his promise by appointing her to fill the seat, but she will be 78 years old by next November, older than any incoming U.S. senator in history. Peter Welch became the oldest newly elected senator last year at age 75 when he won an open seat in Vermont after serving as its long-time representative. Our current Senate, in which Feinstein was the oldest member, is more geriatric than it has ever been. Moreover, Lee currently trails both Schiff and Porter in voter surveys.
Butler’s appointment may not change the current picture, which anticipates a two-way race between Schiff and Porter. California has an “open primary” system, in which the top two candidates advance to the general election regardless of party, so there may well be no viable Republican contender who can make the cut.
Schiff is 63 years old, and has represented west Los Angeles and Hollywood in the House since the year 2000. He started his House career as a somewhat moderate “Blue Dog” Democrat, but has generally moved to the left since then, and chaired the House Intelligence Committee and doggedly pursued the impeachment of Donald Trump.
Porter is 49 years old, and was a law professor (and a protege of Sen. Elizabeth Warren) until she was elected to represent a previously Republican area of Orange County in 2018. A native of rural Iowa and a single parent, Porter has attracted notice by using her famous white board to grill Jamie Dimon of JP Morgan Chase and former HUD Secretary Ben Carson, among others.
So the interim appointment of Laphonza Butler as California’s second Black U.S. senator may well turn out to be a historical footnote. Dianne Feinstein, while largely incompetent at the end of her career, left big shoes to fill, and it will be up to California voters to decide who fills them.
Jay Davis is a retired Rapid City attorney.
