Newsom says Senate pick Butler free to run in 2024

Newly sworn-in Sen. Laphonza Butler (D-Calif.) is free to run for a full term in the U.S. Senate if she chooses to do so, a spokesperson for California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s (D) office confirmed in a statement Tuesday.

“There are no conditions related to the Governor’s appointment of Senator-designate Butler. That decision is entirely hers,” the spokesperson said.

Butler is replacing Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D), a trailblazer for women in politics who died last week, leaving Newsom to pick her replacement.

Newsom previously pledged not to appoint any candidate already in the race for U.S. Senate in California in 2024, and he instead indicated he would choose a caretaker to hold the seat until a permanent replacement for Feinstein was elected.

But Newsom, in remarks to reporters Monday night and in his office’s statement, made it clear the decision would be left to Butler.

Butler told the Los Angeles Times on Tuesday that she is unsure whether she will run next year.

“I have no idea. I genuinely don’t know,” Butler said. “I want to carry [Feinstein’s] baton with the honor that it deserves, and so I genuinely have no idea.”

If she decides to run for the seat in 2024, she would join several prominent Democrats vying for the spot, including California Reps. Barbara Lee, Katie Porter and Adam Schiff. 

In public remarks Monday afternoon, Newsom praised Butler as an excellent pick.

“I just think Laphonza Butler is uniquely positioned, simply the best person that I could find for this moment in this job,” Newsom said. 

“I’ve got an incredible appointee,” he added. “You in some ways can’t even make all of this up, if I had to literally design from the mind of imagination, put pen to paper, someone I would like.”

Butler was sworn in to the U.S. Senate on Tuesday afternoon. Her appointment also fulfills Newsom’s pledge to appoint a Black woman to Feinstein’s seat.