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Democratic Rep. Katie Porter on Tuesday announced that she’s running for the Senate seat currently held by Sen. Dianne Feinstein in California, potentially setting up a showdown in 2024 between the Senate’s oldest current member and a rising star in the Democratic Party.
“California needs a warrior in the Senate — to stand up to special interests, fight the dangerous imbalance in our economy, and hold so-called leaders like Mitch McConnell accountable for rigging our democracy,” Porter wrote in a tweet with a video announcing her candidacy. “Today, I’m proud to announce my candidacy for the U.S. Senate in 2024.”
Porter is the first Democrat to formally announce her bid for the seat held by Feinstein, who has been in the Senate for three decades. California employs a “jungle primary,” in which candidates from all parties compete in a primary, with the top two vote-getters moving on to the fall’s general election.
Feinstein, 89, hasn’t said whether she plans to retire. In recent years, she has been the subject of a series of reports citing unnamed Democratic sources who have questioned her mental fitness to serve. After one such article in the San Francisco Chronicle last year, Feinstein issued a statement insisting she is “an effective representative for 40 million Californians, and the record shows that I am.”
“Everyone is of course welcome to throw their hat in the ring, and I will make an announcement concerning my plans for 2024 at the appropriate time,” Feinstein, who won her sixth election in 2018 said in a statement Tuesday. She added that she is currently “focused on ensuring California has all the resources it needs” to deal with deadly storms hitting the state.
Porter is currently serving her third term in the House, and has sought to position herself as an outsider. A single mother representing a relatively wealthy Orange County district, she often talks about how she understands the kitchen table issues everyday Americans face. And in her video announcing her candidacy, she promised to be a “warrior” in Washington.
During last week’s grueling series of votes for House speaker, Porter was spotted on the House floor reading the book, “The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F***k” by Mark Manson.
Porter narrowly won her race in 2022 against Republican Scott Baugh.
