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Newsom Denies Call To Keep Black Woman In Kamala Harris’ Senate Seat, Picks Latino Man

   DailyWire.com
LOS ANGELES, CA -- THURSDAY, OCTOBER 26: Secretary of State Alex Padilla, right, endorses California Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom, left, in the governor's race during an event at the Laborers' International Union of North America Local 300 hall in Los Angeles, CA, on Oct. 26, 2017.
Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

On Tuesday, Governor Gavin Newsom announced that he had chosen California Secretary of State Alex Padilla, a longtime ally and fellow Democrat, to fill the open seat in the U.S. Senate, making him the first Latino to speak for the state in that legislative body.

Padilla, 47, will replace Kamala Harris, who is expected to resign from the position in the near future.

“His appointment will make history,” Gov. Newsom tweeted on Tuesday. “But the [Alex Padilla] I know is far more interested in changing history – especially for the working men and women of our state and country.”

“I can think of no one better to represent the state of California as our next United States Senator.”

Gov. Newsom was under pressure from black community leaders, Black Lives Matter, and some racial justice groups to appoint a black woman to succeed Harris. However, other progressive organizations had pushed the governor to pick a Latino.

On Monday, Newsom reportedly informed Padilla of his decision in a Zoom call that was later released for public viewing.  He led up to the big moment by asking Padilla about his parents, Santos and Lupe, who immigrated from Mexico and met in Los Angeles. Padilla’s late mother became a U.S. citizen in 1999, three years after his father took the oath of citizenship.

“Can you imagine what Mom would be thinking now as I ask you if you want to be the next U.S. Senator…in the great state of California?” Newsom said during the virtual meeting.

Padilla appeared emotional, asking, “You serious?”

“This is the official – this is the ask, brother,” the governor replied

“I’m honored, man,” Padilla said, tearing up. “And I’m humbled.”

As The Times reports:

The son of Mexican immigrants who settled in the San Fernando Valley, Padilla rose to the upper echelon of state politics, closely shadowing the steady, decades-long ascension of Latino power and influence in California, from L.A.’s towering City Hall to the chandeliered chambers of the state Capitol.

 At age 26, Padilla won a seat on the Los Angeles City Council during the anti-immigrant tumult of the 1990s, after California voters approved measures requiring “English-only” public schools and banning immigrants who were in the U.S. illegally from government assistance and services. Padilla, who earned a degree in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, went on to become the city’s youngest council president, a state senator and California’s current two-term secretary of state.

Padilla once worked as an aide to Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA).

After Tuesday’s announcement, Padilla told the L.A. Times he is eager to bring “an important perspective to the deliberations of the United States Senate.”

“I know there’s a lot of big-picture issues, but the COVID response is front and center,” he told the outlet. “A relief package was done last weekend but much more is going to be necessary. The pandemic is far from over.”

Later in the day, Newsom nominated Assemblywoman Shirley Weber to replace Padilla as secretary of state. She would be the first black woman to serve in that office if confirmed.

Related: Black Lives Matter Demands CA Gov. Newsom Appoint a Black Woman To U.S. Senate

 

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