Who could replace late California Sen. Feinstein in 2024 election?

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Even before the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a historic force in California politics whose death was announced in late September, initially revealed that she would not seek reelection in 2024, ambitious Democratic politicians had begun lining up to replace her. A handful of prominent Republicans recently announced they would vie for the Senate seat as well, with another big-name GOP Californian weighing a bid.

Feinstein, 90, had been in the public eye for more than half a century, notably since she became San Francisco’s leader after the 1978 assassinations of Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk. In recent years, she faced mounting questions about her mental acuity and her old-school brand of bipartisanship that is viewed as outdated in today’s bitterly divided era. These factors led Democrats to leap into the race to replace her before she announced her intentions — a move that would previously have been considered impolitic.

Before California voters had the opportunity to decide who will replace Feinstein in the 2024 election, her death led Gov. Gavin Newsom to appoint labor leader and Democratic strategist Laphonza Butler to the seat. The former leader of Emily’s List, a group devoted to supporting pro-choice Democratic women candidates, decided not to enter the race and seek a full term.

VIDEO | 03:19

Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s death raises question of who replaces her

The Los Angeles Times’ Benjamin Oreskes breaks down how Gov. Gavin Newsom may decide on who will fill the late senators vacant seat and the legacy she leaves behind.

Many candidates are expected to run, or at least consider running, for her seat. Here are some of the most prominent:

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Officially running

Rep. Katie Porter talks to constituents at the Islamic Center of Irvine in 2019.

Rep. Katie Porter, 49, Democrat

Resume:

The Iowa native is an attorney and a protégé of Sen. Elizabeth Warren, whom Porter met while taking Warren’s bankruptcy law class at Harvard Law School. In 2011, Porter moved to California when she became a law professor at UC Irvine. The following year, then-California Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris appointed Porter to be the state’s independent monitor overseeing the state’s share of a $25-billion mortgage settlement with banks.
In 2018, Porter was elected to represent a swath of Orange County in Congress during a blue wave of Democratic victories across the nation. She was reelected twice, with a narrow win in her last race in 2022. A prodigious fundraiser, Porter was forced to spend a significant amount of money defending her seat.
She was the first major candidate to announce her 2024 campaign for a U.S. Senate seat, notably before Feinstein announced her plans.

Best known for:

The suburban, minivan-driving single mom is viewed as a rising star in the national Democratic Party, in part because of her pointed questioning of bank executives and former President Trump’s appointees and her use of whiteboards to explain complex policies during congressional hearings. Porter also has a knack for social media and creating memorable images that go viral, such as nonchalantly reading a book titled “The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F—” during the lengthy House speaker election in January.

Potential obstacles:

Some have questioned the wisdom of Porter announcing her Senate campaign before Feinstein publicly disclosed her plans, and while California was being battered by historic, deadly storms.
Porter wiped out a substantial chunk of her campaign coffers defending her House seat in 2022, though she is probably able to recoup the money relatively quickly because of her national army of small-dollar donors.

Rep. Adam Schiff of Burbank speaks to reporters at the Capitol in 2019.

Rep. Adam B. Schiff, 63, Democrat

Resume:

Schiff was born in Massachusetts and moved with his family to Arizona and then California. He was the valedictorian of his 1978 graduating class at Monte Vista High School in Danville, where his classmates voted him most likely to succeed. After attending Stanford University and Harvard Law School, Schiff became a federal prosecutor. Among his most prominent cases was prosecuting an FBI agent who became a Russian spy.
Schiff was elected to the state Senate in 1996 and then to the U.S. House in 2000.

Best known for:

Initially viewed as a mild-mannered moderate focused on national security and foreign policy, Schiff entered the national spotlight during the Trump administration. He led the first impeachment effort against the then-president. He also served on the congressional panel investigating the insurrection at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 — hearings that culminated in the former president being referred to the Justice Department for possible federal prosecution. Schiff told The Times that these experiences — “fights to preserve democracy” — differentiate him from his Senate campaign rivals.
Such public roles have made him a target for GOP lawmakers — House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) in January removed Schiff from the Intelligence Committee.
Among Democrats, Schiff is a fundraising juggernaut. He had nearly $21 million in the bank in late November and has raised significant money since announcing his Senate bid.

Potential obstacles:

As a former prosecutor, Schiff will have to tread a delicate path similar to the one current Vice President Kamala Harris attempted to navigate when she ran for president in 2020 — explaining a prosecutorial background at a time marked by significant concerns among liberal voters about the treatment of people of color in the criminal justice system. As a white man, Schiff faces an additional challenge among some California Democratic voters who hope to diversify the Senate’s ranks.

Rep. Barbara Lee speaks on the floor of the House of Representatives in 2020.

Rep. Barbara Lee, 77, Democrat

Resume:

Lee has a deep history of political activism, dating back to when she was a student at Mills College. She worked on the 1972 presidential campaign of Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman to hold a seat in Congress, and on Black Panther Party co-founder Bobby Seale’s mayoral race in Oakland the following year.
Lee served as a staffer for Rep. Ron Dellums before being elected to the state Legislature, where she served for eight years. Lee was elected to Congress in a special election in 1998 and has overwhelmingly won reelection since.
When Gov. Gavin Newsom pledged during the 2021 recall election to appoint a Black woman to replace Feinstein if she stepped down, political experts speculated that he was referring to Lee.

Best known for:

As the only member of Congress to vote against the measure that authorized President George W. Bush to use military force after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Lee was thrust into the national spotlight. She argued that the law granted the president too much power and warned her fellow lawmakers to be “careful not to embark on an open-ended war with neither an exit strategy nor a focused target.” In the aftermath of her vote, Lee was viewed as a pariah by many, including people in her party, and received death threats. But after decades of overseas entanglements, politicians in both parties now make arguments that echo what Lee said in 2001.

Potential obstacles:

Lee represents one of the most liberal congressional districts in the nation and has sailed to reelection with little opposition. This was not a problem in her congressional career but could be in a run for statewide office — because of her liberal voting record and paltry fundraising record. Statewide campaigns in California require an enormous amount of money to reach voters across the state, notably moderates if the general election is a race between two Democrats.

Steve Garvey smiles with his arms folded.

Steve Garvey, 74, Republican

Resume:

The first baseman played for the Dodgers from 1969 to 1982 and for the San Diego Padres from 1983 to 1987 — major league teams in two of the biggest media markets in the state. Garvey won a World Series title with the Dodgers in 1981, was a 10-time National League All-Star and won four Gold Glove awards.

Potential obstacles:

He’s a Republican in a state where Democrats outnumber Republicans nearly 2 to 1. He twice voted for former President Trump and holds some views that don’t align with many California voters’.
Garvey had a scandalous personal life in the 1980s. After a bitter divorce, he fathered children with two women.

Eric Early, 65, Republican

Resume:

Early, a GOP attorney, was the first prominent Republican to announce a 2024 run for Feinstein’s seat.
In previous campaigns, Early has embraced a deeply conservative platform, including outlawing the teaching of critical race theory in schools, as well as supporting additional restrictions on abortion and broad gun ownership rights. While such stances are out of step with most California voters, they align with the views of many members of the state GOP’s grassroots supporters.
Early previously worked in the entertainment industry on animated children’s shows such as “G.I. Joe” and “Jem and the Holograms.”

Best known for:

Early unsuccessfully ran for California attorney general twice and once for Congress (against Schiff).

Obstacles:

No Republican has won statewide office since 2006, given Democrats’ voter-registration advantage over Republicans in California. The disparity has grown since then, with GOP voters outnumbered nearly 2 to 1 by Democrats, according to the most recent state voter registration statistics.
Additionally, the Trump loyalist has struggled to win the support of members of his own party. Then-GOP House leader Kevin McCarthy endorsed Early’s Republican rival in the 2022 attorney general’s race, who advanced to the general election but ultimately lost to Democratic Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta.

Also running:

Christina Pascucci, 38, Democrat: Los Angeles television journalist.
James P. Bradley, 65, Republican: Coast Guard veteran and health industry executive. Ran unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate in 2018 and 2022 and for U.S. Congress in 2000.
Denice Gary-Pandol, 64, Republican: Political scientist and educator.

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Other potential candidates, wild cards and longshots

State Sen. Brian Dahle, 58, Republican: Dahle, a farmer and longtime local and legislative elected official from Bieber, unsuccessfully challenged Newsom in the 2022 gubernatorial contest. While he was able to get California Republicans behind that campaign, he hasn’t showed any signs of interest in a Senate bid.
Mark Meuser, 49, Republican: The conservative attorney was involved in the litigation that successfully stopped Democrats from removing Trump’s name from the California ballot in 2020. He also repeatedly sued Newsom over COVID-19 policy and other matters. The Pasadena resident unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. Senate in 2022, secretary of state in 2018 and state Senate in 2012.

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Dropped out

Lexi Reese, 49, Democrat: A Silicon Valley executive who worked at Google, Facebook, American Express and other companies. She donated $534,200 to her campaign as of Sept. 30, according to campaign finance disclosures filed with the Federal Election Commission. She dropped out of the contest on Nov. 28.

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