California Gov. Gavin Newsom has encountered increasing pressure to fill Vice President-elect Kamala Harris’ soon-to-be-vacated Senate seat with either another Black woman or a Latino.
Two Democratic donor groups — Electing Women Bay Area and the Los Angeles Women’s Collective — recently purchased full-page advertisements in the San Francisco Chronicle and the Los Angeles Times, urging Newsom to choose a woman of color.
“Women of color are the core drivers of electoral progress in this country and their voices should be heard in the nation’s highest governing body,” says the ad, which was signed by more than 150 top female donors, the Chronicle reported. “California is fortunate to have a strong pipeline of women of color in elected office who are prepared to serve.”
The Democratic governor said at a Nov. 23 news conference that while he didn’t know exactly when he would select Harris’ replacement, “progress has been made in terms of getting closer” to a decision, the Chronicle reported.
Harris, who will resign her Senate seat in January when she and President-elect Joe Biden are inaugurated, is one of only four women of color currently in the 100-member Senate, along with fellow Democrats Mazie Hirono of Hawaii, Tammy Duckworth of Illinois and Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada.
