Key Points
Gavin Newsom has selected Laphonza Butler, a Democratic strategist and adviser to Kamala Harris' 2020 presidential campaign, to fill the US Senate seat made vacant by the death of Sen. Dianne Feinstein...
In choosing Butler on Sunday, Newsom fulfilled his pledge to appoint a Black woman if Feinstein's seat became open..
However, he had been facing pressure from some Black politicians and advocacy groups to select Barbara Lee, a prominent Black congresswoman who is already running for the seat...
Laphonza will carry the baton left by Sen. Feinstein (and) continue to break glass ceilings and fight for all Californians in Washington DC, he said.. Butler leads Emily's List, a political organisation that supports Democratic women candidates who favour abortion rights..
She served as a senior adviser to Harris's 2020 presidential campaign while working at a political firm filled with strategists who have worked for Newsom and many other prominent state Democrats..
