ANAHEIM, California — The Democrats' fragile majority in the U.S. Senate puts extra pressure on California Gov. Gavin Newsom to quickly pick a replacement for Sen. Dianne Feinstein following her death, a fraught decision for a two-term governor with national ambitions of his own.
The Democratic governor had promised to appoint a Black woman in 2021 as concerns grew about Feinstein's declining health. He also has said he would avoid the field of candidates already campaigning for the post, which will be on the ballot next year and includes Rep. Barbara Lee, one of the state's most prominent Black women currently serving in elected office.
In a letter on Friday, the NAACP told Newsom, “Now the time has come for you to keep your promise.”
“When you openly promised to appoint an African American woman to Sen. Feinstein’s seat if given the opportunity, the entire African American community in California and around the nation celebrated,” said the letter, signed by President Derrick Johnson and Rick Callender, who heads the California-Hawaii conference.
Aimee Allison, who founded She the People, a political advocacy network for women of color, said in a statement that “there is no clearer choice for this appointment than Rep. Lee.”
“Barbara Lee is ready to lead in the Senate on day one,” she said, adding that the appointment would honor Feinstein's legacy.
In filling the Senate vacancy, Newsom has the sole authority to name a successor. He could even pick himself, though that is unlikely. He could also call a special election, but he's not expected to do that.
Newsom made no mention of Feinstein's replacement in a statement he issued marking her death Friday morning.
“Dianne Feinstein was many things – a powerful, trailblazing U.S. Senator; an early voice for gun control; a leader in times of tragedy and chaos. But to me, she was a dear friend, a lifelong mentor, and a role model not only for me, but to my wife and daughters for what a powerful, effective leader looks
On Capitol Hill, Feinstein's death leaves Senate Democrats with no margin for error until a successor is appointed.
Democrats now have a functional majority of just 50 seats in the Senate, while Republicans hold 49. At the same time, many Democrats are calling for the resignation of the indicted Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., although the embattled Democrat has vowed not to step down.
And while Democrats continue to control Congress' upper chamber, Feinstein's absence will make it harder to advance Biden's judge nominees in the Judiciary Committee.
Newsom’s pledge to appoint a Black woman has put him in a difficult political spot, and any choice risks alienating key allies at home, including those he would need for a future national campaign.
Should he follow through on his pledge to avoid picking from those already running in the Senate primary, he could select a true caretaker who would be replaced by whomever voters select in next year's election. A handful of Black women in office have been floated as possibilities, including Secretary of State Shirley Weber and Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly Mitchell.
But Lee and others lashed out at Newsom earlier in the month after he indicated he would select a caretaker instead of picking from the current slate of candidates.
“The idea that a Black woman should be appointed only as a caretaker to simply check a box is insulting to countless Black women across this country who have carried the Democratic Party to victory election after election,” Lee posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.
That was echoed by Allison of She the People, who said, “Black women are not mere caretakers, but the voting and organizing center of the national Democratic Party.”
Lee on Friday posted that Feinstein was “a champion for our state, and served as the voice of a political revolution for women.” She did not address the open seat.
Some California Democrats are still upset about Newsom's last Senate appointment.
He chose Alex Padilla, then California’s secretary of state and a personal friend, to replace Kamala Harris in the Senate when she was elected vice president. That process took more than six weeks. That made Padilla California’s first Latino senator, but it also left the Senate without a Black woman.
He later promised that if Feinstein’s seat became vacant, he would choose a Black woman to replace her.
In a recent interview with Fox 11 TV in Los Angeles, Newsom said he was being swamped with recommendations for how to fill a possible Senate vacancy.
The decision for Newsom is clouded by his personal relationship with the late senator.
Newsom, whose father was a prominent judge in San Francisco, has known Feinstein since he was a child and has spoken recently about their personal connection. He interned in her office in college and said he considers her to be family. He said it wasn’t long ago that she would call him on the phone to discuss a variety of issues, from water policy to forest management.
“I have no objectivity whatsoever,” he said in a recent interview with NBC when asked about Feinstein and her decision to stay in the Senate.
He said he was hoping he would never have to make a decision to fill her seat.
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Peoples reported from New York. AP writers Kathleen Ronayne in Sacramento, California, and Mary Clare Jalonick in Washington contributed.
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