John,
According to POLITICO, California Governor Gavin Newsom is “leaning toward California elections chief Alex Padilla to fill the U.S. Senate seat of Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.”
Under state law, Governor Newsom can appoint a replacement to fill Harris’ soon-to-be vacant seat until 2022, but we believe his focus should be on protecting women’s representation in Congress, not setting it back. Especially when, as POLITICO further reports, the appointment “could amount to virtually a lifetime appointment, considering the way Democrats dominate California politics.”
Democrats are urging Newsom to consider Black women leaders such as Rep. Karen Bass or Rep. Barbara Lee for the role, citing that “there's no way [the governor] should allow anyone other than a Black woman to fill the seat of Harris, who's only the second Black woman in the history of the U.S. Senate. There should be no contest.”
In not appointing a Black woman to the position, Gov. Newsom could be closing the door that Harris boldly opened for women’s representation in the Senate in 2016 -- and leave no Black women senators in the legislative body. But given the growing division surrounding Newsom’s potential pick for the Senate, we need to know what supporters like you are thinking:
Should a Black woman fill Kamala Harris’ Senate seat?
Thank you so much for taking our poll today.
