Feinstein's Replacement Makes a Big Announcement: She Won't Be in Senate for Long
Newly-appointed Democratic California Sen. Laphonza Butler will not seek a full term in next year’s election.
Earlier this month, Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom picked Butler to fill the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s seat until the 2024 election next November.
Newsom had pledged to choose a black woman, since there are currently no black women serving in the Senate. Butler also identifies as LGBT, which is another issue important to the governor and checks another diversity box.
Butler posted Thursday on X regarding her decision not to run: “I’ve always believed elected leaders should have real clarity about why they’re in office and what they want to do with the responsibility and power they have.”
“I’ve spent the past 16 days pursuing my own clarity — what kind of life I want to have, what kind of service I want to offer and what kind of voice I want to bring forward,” the senator continued.
do with the responsibility and power they have.
I’ve spent the past 16 days pursuing my own clarity – what kind of life I want to have, what kind of service I want to offer and what kind of voice I want to bring forward.— Laphonza Butler (@LaphonzaB) October 19, 2023
It may not be the decision people expected but it’s the right one for me.
California voters want leaders who think about them and the issues they care most about. I now have 383 days to serve the people of California with every ounce of energy and effort that I have.
— Laphonza Butler (@LaphonzaB) October 19, 2023
“After considering those questions I’ve decided not to run for a full term in the US Senate. Knowing you can win a campaign doesn’t always mean you should run a campaign,” she wrote. “It may not be the decision people expected but it’s the right one for me.”
Thanks to Newsom’s speedy appointment of Butler, Democrats have gone back to a slim 51 to 49 working majority in the Senate, which includes three independents that caucus with the party.
Butler, who previously lived in California, was serving as president of the pro-abortion group Emily’s List in Washington, D.C., and living in Maryland when Newsom selected her.
The governor had also promised not to choose anyone who is running for Feinstein’s seat, which includes Reps. Adam Schiff, Katie Porter and Barbara Lee.
Lee is the only black woman among them and is currently polling a distant third in the race, according to a University of California, Berkeley IGS poll released last month.
Schiff is at 20 percent support, followed by Porter at 17 percent and Lee at 7 percent. California has a jungle primary, meaning the top two vote getters in the March primary, regardless of party, advance to the general election in November.
On the Republican side, former Dodgers first baseman Steve Garvey announced his candidacy earlier this month, which may make it tougher for two Democrats to advance to the general election.
The Dodgers legend was already polling at 7 percent in the Berkeley poll nearly two months before entering the race.
The poll was conducted from August 24-29 among 6,030 California registered voters. The margin of error is approximately +/- 2.5 percent.
Cal Matters reported that as of Sept. 30, Schiff’s campaign had $32 million on hand, while Porter’s had $12 million and Lee’s had $1.3 million.
“Nobody was looking for a fourth candidate,” former California Democratic Party Chairman John Burton told the news outlet. “It wasn’t like they were looking for another person to run in a weak field. It’s a very strong field.”
Cal Matters further noted, “While her decision might indeed come as a surprise to some, if Butler had decided to run, she would have also faced multiple challenges. She would have only had less than five months to assemble a competitive campaign before the March 5 primary and catch up in fundraising.”
Butler’s decision may well have been based primarily on her personal preference not to run, but the reality was that her chances of winning were slight.
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