Newsom chooses Laphonza Butler to fill Dianne Feinstein's Senate seat

California Gov. Gavin Newsom's (D) office confirmed late Sunday that he will name Laphonza Butler, a Democratic strategist and former labor leader, to fill the Senate seat left vacant by Sen. Dianne Feinstein's (D-Calif.) death at age 90 on Thursday. Butler is currently president of Emily's List, a national organization that works to elect female Democrats who support abortion rights. She was an adviser to Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2020 campaign.

In naming Butler, Newsom fulfilled a promise to appoint a Black woman to the Senate. He had faced pressure to appoint Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), who is running in a competitive three-way race for the same Senate seat; Feinstein intended to retire after her term ended in 2024. But choosing Lee would have given her an advantage over Rep. Adam Schiff and Rep. Katie Porter, and Newsom said he wanted to stay neutral in that primary.

Butler will serve through the end of 2024, and if "she wants to seek a full term in 2024, then she is free to do so," Newsom spokesperson Anthony York said Sunday. "There is absolutely no litmus test, no promise." The filing deadline is Dec. 8. Butler could be sworn in as soon as Tuesday evening, The Associated Press reported, returning the Democrats to their 51-49 advantage in the Senate.

This is Newsom's second Senate appointment after elevating Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) in 2020 to fill the vacancy left when Harris became vice president. Butler will be the only Black woman in the Senate and the first openly LGBTQ lawmaker to represent California in the upper chamber. She is currently a resident of Maryland, though she used to live in California and can change her residency back again before being sworn in, the Los Angeles Times reported.