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Gavin Newsom Taps Laphonza Butler to Fill Sen. Feinstein's Seat, Rejecting Calls to Pick Barbara Lee
California Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein, the longest-serving woman to ever serve in the Senate, has died at the age of 90. Feinstein had previously announced plans to retire at the end of this term, sparking an ongoing race to replace her open seat that's been led by California Congressmembers Barbara Lee, Katie Porter and Adam Schiff. California Governor Gavin Newsom has tapped Laphonza Butler, the president of the Democratic pro-abortion organization EMILY's List and a former leader of the California SEIU, as Feinstein's temporary replacement. Butler will become the only Black woman in the Senate and California's first openly LGBTQ+ senator. For more on Newsom's choice of Butler, the race to replace Feinstein and the late senator's political legacy, we continue our conversation with journalist Sasha Abramsky, whose latest piece for The Nation is titled "Dianne Feinstein's Empty Seat."