World

Newsom picks Butler to fill Feinstein's US Senate seat

By AAP Newswire

Oct 3, 2023

California governor Gavin Newsom says he has picked Laphonza Butler to fill the US Senate vacancy left by Dianne Feinstein, who died last week at the age of 90.

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Butler is a former president of EMILY's List, an organisation that works to elect to office Democratic female candidates who support abortion rights.

She will serve through the end of Feinstein's term in January 2025.

Butler has also worked as a senior adviser to US Vice President Kamala Harris and was the president of the largest labour union in California, representing more than 325,000 nursing home and home-care workers throughout the state.

"Laphonza has spent her entire career fighting for women and girls and has been a fierce advocate for working people," Newsom said in a social media post on Sunday.

Feinstein, who became the longest-serving woman US senator ever, advocated gun control and spearheaded the first federal assault weapons ban.

She also documented the CIA's torture of foreign terrorism suspects.

Feinstein in February said she would not seek re-election, and contenders began lining up for her seat.Â

Progressive US Representative Barbara Lee is running for the seat in 2024 as are other prominent Democrats including US Representatives Adam Schiff and Katie Porter.

By AAP Newswire

Australian Associated Press