San Francisco Mayor London Breed has criticized California Governor Gavin Newsom's decision to name California Secretary of State Alex Padilla as Kamala Harris' replacement in the Senate. Breed feels that Newsom missed an opportunity to appoint a young, Black woman to the Senate.
"This is a real blow to the African American community, to African American women, to women in general," Breed said.
"It's really challenging to put it into words, but it was definitely a surprise."
Prior to being elected as the next Vice President, Kamala Harris was the only Black woman serving in the Senate. Currently, Tim Scott and Cory Booker are the only Black Senators in the U.S.
"And it's an unfortunate situation as we are trying to move this country forward, and making sure that Black Lives truly matter and that African Americans have a seat at the table — especially African American women," she continued, according to the news outlet. "After what was done in this race on a national level, [it] definitely is unfortunate."
Prior to Padilla's appointment, Reps. Karen Bass and Barbara Lee were considered as top candidates alongside Breed. Breed is also believed to be a possible candidate to join the Biden-Harris administration.
Padilla will step into the Senate as the first Latino to represent the state of California. Padilla's seat will be up for re-election in 2022, but he has already announced his intent to run. It is unclear if Breed, Bass or Lee or will run against him in the Democratic Primary.
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