Once she is sworn in, Butler will be the only Black woman in the Senate and the first openly LGBTQ+ California senator.
That, alongside her background in the labor and women's rights movements, helps harden Newsom’s ties to important national Democratic constituencies.
She is expected to be sworn in Tuesday in Washington by Harris, the last Black woman to serve in the Senate.
At the time, Newsom was under pressure to select a Black woman to fill the seat of Harris, who is Black.
His choice of Padilla, the state’s first Latino senator, rankled Black leadership in the state who saw the seat as their own.
Persons:
Gavin Newsom, Dianne Feinstein, Laphonza Butler, Butler, Newsom, Butler's, “, Kamala Harris's, ”, Jack Pitney, Katie Porter, Adam Schiff, Barbara Lee, haven’t, Bill Essayli, Harris, Lee, Feinstein, snubbing Lee, Sen, Steven Bradford, ” Aimee Allison, “ Laphonza, Arnuflo De, Arnuflo De La Cruz, Jerry Brown, La Cruz, ” De La Cruz, Maria Elena Durazo, ” Durazo, ” Butler, Uber, Alex Padilla, Padilla, rankled, ___
Organizations:
ANGELES, California Gov, Senate, Democratic, workaday Democratic, Claremont McKenna College, House Democrats, California Legislative Black Caucus, Gov, Los Angeles Federation of Labor
Locations:
U.S, California, San Francisco, Washington, Arnuflo De La, Sacramento