Meet Laphonza Butler: Dianne Feinstein’s replacement in the US Senate

It’s official! Laphonza Butler has been sworn in to replace the late Dianne Feinstein as Senator of California.

Butler was appointed by California Governor Gavin Newsom a few days after Feinstein passed away at the age of 90. She was the oldest US senator to date.

The BBC remarks that under California law, the governor can appoint a senator until the next statewide elections.

Image: @dreikubik / Unsplash

CNN highlights that Butler is the first black lesbian senator of the United States and currently the only African American woman in the US Senate.

Image: Butler and her wife, Neneki Lee

Butler was born in Magnolia, Mississippi in 1979. She earned a B.A. in Political Science from Jackson State University in 2001.

According to CNN, the future Senator for California started her political career in union organizing, serving in different roles at the Service Employees International Union, the nation’s largest home care workers union.

Image: @patrickperkins / Unsplash

Butler was also reported to have worked as a special advisor for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign in 2016.

In 2018, she was appointed by California governor Jerry Brown to a 12-year term as a regent of the University of California. She resigned in 2021.

Image: @georgeiermann / Unsplash

Butler was also senior advisor to Kamala Harris, during the Democratic presidential primary of 2020, the BBC writes.

CBS News also wrote that Butler served as director of public policy and campaign for Airbnb in North America.

According to the Los Angeles Times, she also advised taxi app service Uber how to deal with labor unions.

More recently, Butler was living in Maryland with her wife and their daughter while leading the EMILY’s List, which CNN describes as an organization dedicated to electing Democratic women who support abortion rights.

About the question of her residency, Butler claimed that she registered to vote in California again prior to her senate appointment.

The BBC highlights that California will hold a special senate election in 2024 to finish out Feinstein’s term in 2025, along with a regularly scheduled senate election for a six-year term meant to end in 2031.

Image: @ajaegers / Unsplash

The first black woman in the US Senate was Carol Moseley Braun, who represented Illinois for the Democratic Party. The second and most prominent was Kamala Harris (pictured) for California, who resigned to become in 2021 to become Vice President.

Who knows what’s next in for Butler in the US Senate?