SF Mayor London Breed Rips Kamala Harris Replacement Pick That Leaves No Black Women in Senate: ‘This Is A Real Blow’

Tommy ChristopherDec 23rd, 2020, 8:59 am
 

San Francisco Mayor London Breed was asked about the selection of California Secretary of State Alex Padilla to replace Vice President-elect Kamala Harris in the U.S. Senate, which will leave the chamber without a single Black woman as a member.

During a COVID-19 briefing Tuesday, Mayor Breed took questions following her update, and was asked about Governor Gavin Newsom’s selection of Secretary Padilla, and specifically its effect on representation.

“What was your initial reaction to the governor appointing Alex Padilla to fill Vice President-elect Kamala Harris’ US Senate seat?” asked Stephanie Sierra of ABC7, adding “How do you feel about the fact that there are no Black women represented in the US Senate? Was this a missed opportunity?”

“I think that there was a lot of pride when not only Kamala was selected as the vice president, the nomination for the party, and is now our vice president-elect for the country, and especially with that pride came, I believe, another opportunity, with her seat, to ensure as she continues to say, that even though you may be the first, make sure you’re not the last,” Mayor Breed said.

“And the sad reality is she was the only African-American woman in the Senate at this time,” Breed continued. “And when you think about the history of this country, of the challenges that exist for African Americans, especially African-American women in the Senate, definitely this is a real blow to the African-American community, to African-American women, to women in general, and I think it’s really challenging to put it in words.”

“But it was definitely a surprise 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, after what was done in this race on a national level. Definitely is unfortunate,” Mayor Breed said.

Mayor Breed also congratulated Secretary Padilla several hours later, writing on Twitter “This is a historic day in California, esp for the Latino community. Congratulations
@AlexPadilla4CA on your appointment to the Senate. We have a lot of work to do to advance the rights of immigrants & people of color in this country & I know you will be leading that fight in DC.”

Secretary Padilla will be the first Latino U.S. senator from California.

Watch above via SFGovTV.

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