California Sen. Kamala Harris has broken one of the highest glass ceilings for women. She's set to become the first female and first African-American and Indian-American woman to serve as Vice President.
But the jockeying for her soon-to-be-vacant Senate seat could result in another barrier-breaker being chosen as her successor.
In recent days, multiple news reports have hinted that Gov. Gavin Newsom is eyeing appointing the state's first Latino senator, with most speculation zeroing in on either Secretary of State Alex Padilla or Attorney General Xavier Becerra. They have both already run and won statewide races. Latinos are the single largest ethnic bloc in California, making up around 39 percent of the state's population.
If that happens, either would join the other five Hispanic Senators set to be part of the 117th Congress — two Republicans (Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz) and three Democrats (New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez, Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto and New Mexico Sen.-elect Ben Ray Lujan). Those four current members had already set a record for Latino representation,
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