Dianne Feinstein, whose three decades in the Senate made her the longest-serving female US senator in history, has died, according to a source familiar. She was 90.
Her death will hand California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom the power to appoint a lawmaker to serve out the rest of Feinstein’s term, keeping the Democratic majority in the chamber through early January 2025. In March 2021, Newsom publicly said he had a list of “multiple” replacements and pledged to appoint a Black woman if Feinstein were to retire.
Feinstein, a Democrat, was a fixture of California politics for decades and was first elected to the US Senate in 1992 after a historic political career in San Francisco.
Feinstein broke a series of glass ceilings throughout her life, and left her fingerprints on some of Capitol Hill’s most consequential works in recent history, including the since-lapsed federal assault weapons ban in 1994 and the 2014 CIA torture report.
In her later years, the California Democrat’s health was the subject of increasing scrutiny and speculation. A hospitalization for shingles in February led to an extended absence from the Senate, stirring complaints from Democrats, as Feinstein’s time away slowed the confirmation of Democratic-appointed judicial nominees.
When she returned to Capitol Hill three months later, it was revealed that she had suffered multiple complications during her recovery, including Ramsay Hunt syndrome and encephalitis. A fall in August briefly sent her to the hospital.
In February 2023, she confirmed that she would not run for reelection, telling CNN, “The time has come.”
Feinstein’s last vote in the Senate was Thursday morning — a procedural vote for short-term government funding. She did not vote during either afternoon vote.