Story at a glance
- In a video conversation tweeted by Newsom, the governor extended the offer to Alex Padilla.
- Padilla got emotional following Newsom’s offer, which he said he would “absolutely” accept.
- Padilla, 47, has served as secretary of state since 2015 and was previously in the California State Senate from 2006 through 2014.
California Secretary of State Alex Padilla (D) will be the first Latino senator from California, a state where Latinos make up about 40 percent of the population.
Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-Calif.) on Tuesday selected Padilla to fill the Senate seat held by Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, who was the first Black woman and South Asian to hold the seat and later became the first woman to be elected vice president.
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In a video conversation tweeted by Newsom, the governor extended the offer to Padilla after the two spoke of Padilla’s parents who both emigrated from Mexico and met in Los Angeles. His father worked as a short-order cook and his mother cleaned houses while raising their family in the working class community of Pacoima, Calif.
His appointment will make history. But the @AlexPadilla4CA I know is far more interested in changing history — especially for the working men and women of our state and country.
I can think of no one better to represent the state of California as our next United States Senator. pic.twitter.com/xiAzpTS42Y
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) December 22, 2020
“Can you imagine what Mom would be thinking now as I ask you if you want to be the next U.S. Senator of the United States from the great state of California?” Newsom asked.
Padilla got emotional following Newsom’s offer, which he said he would “absolutely” accept.
“I’m honored, man, and I’m humbled, because of them,” Padilla said in the video.
Padilla, 47, has served as secretary of state since 2015 and was previously in the California State Senate from 2006 through 2014.
He has held public office since 1999, when he was elected at the age of 26 to the Los Angeles City Council to represent the east San Fernando Valley community where he was raised. He later went on to become the youngest member and the first Latino to serve as council president.
Padilla has been an advocate of voting rights and has aimed at making California’s elections more accessible and inclusive. He was in charge of the unprecedented task of registering more than 22 million Californians to vote ahead of the general election.
“I am honored and humbled by the trust placed in me by Governor Newsom, and I intend to work each and every day to honor that trust and deliver for all Californians,” Padilla said in a statement.
“From those struggling to make ends meet to the small businesses fighting to keep their doors open to the health care workers looking for relief, please know that I am going to the Senate to fight for you. We will get through this pandemic together and rebuild our economy in a way that doesn’t leave working families behind.”
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