SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Gov. Gavin Newsom has selected Secretary of State Alex Padilla to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.
In an announcement on his Twitter account, Newsom said of Padilla: “His appointment will make history. But the @AlexPadilla4CA 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.”
Padilla becomes California’s first Latino U.S. senator. The state has never had a Latino senator, even though the California is nearly 40% Latino.
The 47-year-old Democrat has served as secretary of state since 2015. He was previously a member of the Los Angeles City Council and was a state senator.
Since Harris’ departure, Newsom had faced some pressure to name a Latino or a Black woman as a replacement.
This story was originally published by Jermaine Ong at KGTV.
