“I’m honored and humbled,” says Alex Padilla. Author: John Bartell Updated: 6:33 PM PST December 22, 2020
SACRAMENTO, Calif. Over an emotional video call, Governor Gavin Newsom appointed the first Latino US Senator to represent California. Secretary of State Alex Padilla will fill the vacant Senate seat left by Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.
“I’m honored and humbled,” Padilla said to the governor during the call.
The appointment is a historic moment for Latinos and for Abram Diaz, Co-Chair of the California Latino Capitol Association Foundation.
“I think it’s because of leadership like his that we have individuals like myself who are inspired to get into politics,” Diaz said.
Gov. Gavin Newsom selects new senator and secretary of state
December 23, 2020
By JOSH FRIEDMAN
California Gov. Gavin Newsom selected Secretary of State Alex Padilla to fill the United States Senate seat being vacated by Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.
Newsom then selected Assemblywoman Shirley Weber to replace Padilla as California’s secretary of state. Padilla will become California’s first-ever Latino senator, while Weber will become the first black California secretary of state.
“His appointment will make history,” Newsom said of Padilla in a tweet. “But the Alex Padilla I know is far more interested in changing history especially for the working men and women of our state and country.”
Miguel Cardona with his parents outside one of their first apartments.
President-elect Joe Biden Tuesday evening announced that Connecticut Education Commissioner Miguel Cardona is his pick to lead the U.S. Department of Education, an agency the president will rely on to get millions of students back into the schools closed by COVID-19 and to convince Congress to invest much more in education for a host of the president’s priorities.
“In Miguel Cardona, America will have an experienced and dedicated public school teacher leading the way at the Department of Education ensuring that every student is equipped to thrive in the economy of the future, that every educator has the resources they need to do their jobs with dignity and success, and that every school is on track to reopen safely,” Biden said in a Tuesday evening press release.
LOS ANGELES (AP) California is getting its first Latino U.S. senator. For Gov. Gavin Newsom, it’s a political gamble.
The Democratic governor Tuesday named Secretary of State Alex Padilla, the son of Mexican immigrants, to fill the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Vice President-elect Kamala Harris. When Padilla goes to Washington, the former state legislator will become California’s first Latino senator since the state’s founding 170 years ago.
In picking a personal friend and fellow Democrat, Newsom had his eye on history and pragmatism he turned to someone he could trust with a year of uncertainty looming, including a possible recall election targeting the governor while the pandemic rages unabated.
LOS ANGELES (AP) California is getting its first Latino U.S. senator. For Gov. Gavin Newsom, it’s a political gamble.
The Democratic governor Tuesday named Secretary of State Alex Padilla, the son of Mexican immigrants, to fill the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Vice President-elect Kamala Harris. When Padilla goes to Washington, the former state legislator will become California’s first Latino senator since the state’s founding 170 years ago.
In picking a personal friend and fellow Democrat, Newsom had his eye on history and pragmatism he turned to someone he could trust with a year of uncertainty looming, including a possible recall election targeting the governor while the pandemic rages unabated.