Choose either Lee or Bass to fill Harris’ seat!
We, along with over 20 CA indivisible groups and the CA Indivisible Green Team, have joined the Black Caucus of the Democratic party in calling on Gov. Newsom to fill Kamala Harris’ senate seat with another well-qualified, progressive, Black woman. Now we’re asking for you to add your voice as well.
Representation of minority voices is important in a legislature that is still 79% white. Women are 51% of the population, but are only 24% of the Senate. When VP-elect Harris leaves for the White House, Newsom’s choice could mean a possible future with exactly ZERO Black women in the Senate.
Considering the huge contribution of Black women in securing the presidency of President-Elect Joe Biden, and the proximity of two excellent choices, Representatives Barbara Lee (CA-13) (full disclosure – Indivisible Ventura is a BIG FAN of Rep. Lee), and Karen Bass, it would be unconscionable for Newsom to select another candidate.
Here are two scripts. Choose one, choose both. Make sure he hears us!
Minimal Script: I’m calling from [zip code] to ask Gov. Newsom to appoint a well-qualified Black woman, such as Rep. Barbara Lee or Rep. Karen Bass, to replace VP-elect Kamala Harris’s Senate seat. It is important to all of us that that Black women continue to have a voice in the Senate.
Slightly longer Script from the CDP Black Caucus: I’m calling from [zip code]. ONE IS NOT ENOUGH; ZERO IS UNACCEPTABLE! Gov. Newsom, far too often the work and sacrifices of Black women go unrecognized and undervalued. Black women showed up and delivered for the Democratic Party and this country. It is time to deliver for Black women. This Thanksgiving, the best way to express our gratitude is to appoint Barbara Lee or Karen Bass to complete Vice-President Elect Kamala Harris’ term to ensure Black women’s voices are represented.
Contact:
Governor Gavin Newsom: (916) 445-2841
email: https://govapps.gov.ca.gov/gov40mail/
Background info:
In 2016, Kamala Harris made history as the first ever South-Asian American woman and second-ever African American woman to be elected to the Senate. At that moment our state and our nation took one more step towards progress and change.
The Senate’s “Ethnic Diversity” listing is here. There are currently three Asian-Americans (counting Harris, all women), four Hispanic-Americans with one woman (Catherine Cortez Masto), and three Black Americans, (counting Harris again), along with Cory A. Booker and Tim Scott, a Republican.
When Senator Harris is sworn in as Vice President Haris, we need to ensure that the progress that has made when she was elected in 2016 is not reversed. It would be a shame to lose this opportunity to uphold the diversity of the US Senate and of the Democratic party by not replacing Senator Harris with another strong and qualified Black female leader like her.
It is for this reason we, along with fellow Indivisible partners across California and the indivisible California Green Team support Representative Barbara Lee, and Representative Karen Bass, as candidates to replace VP-elect Kamala Harris in the US Senate.
Reading
- NEW (Vox) The long list of contenders for Kamala Harris’s Senate seat, explained
- (Politico) Newsom faces pressure to fill Harris seat with woman of color instead of presumed favorite
- (Vox) Big California donors want to fill Kamala Harris’s Senate seat with a woman of color
- (Sacbee) How will Gavin Newsom pick Kamala Harris’ replacement? Ethnicity, electability, experience?
INDIVISIBLE VENTURA 