Senate candidates who hope to replace Feinstein try to define themselves as they court Democratic activists

On the largest stage to date in the race to replace retiring California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the three top Democratic candidates dashed through their state party’s convention this weekend in downtown Los Angeles, courting delegates, meeting with potential backers and trying to build early support in the unpredictable contest.

Rep. Katie Porter snapped selfies with fans as her campaign offered croissants, muffins and coffee. Rep. Adam B. Schiff delivered a combination of risqué humor and dad jokes during a nighttime stand-up performance. And Rep. Barbara Lee leaned heavily into her long history of supporting liberal causes, even when they were unpopular and prompted death threats, as her supporters nibbled on cupcakes, macaroons and chocolate truffles.

Very little separates the trio on policy. So to forge a path to victory in the 2024 race, they need to find a way to differentiate themselves before California’s March primary.

“They’re going to have to decide what segment of the Democratic electorate they want to peel off and take ownership of for themselves,” Democratic strategist Roger Salazar said.

Lee, a longtime Oakland elected official, is likely to have strength among Bay Area and Black voters, who cast ballots at greater rates than other Democrats, according to Salazar and other Democratic strategists. Meanwhile, Schiff of Burbank and Porter of Irvine could split Southern California Democrats. Porter and Lee could split the Democratic women’s vote in a state that has had two female senators for most of the last three decades. It’s unclear who has an edge among Latino, Asian American and LGBTQ+ Californians.

“The pie is going to be messy,” Salazar said. “I don’t think anyone is going to have a clean slice.”

Nearly 2,500 delegates, in addition to other guests, attended the California Democratic Party convention this weekend — voters who tend to be more liberal and informed about the intricacies of the party’s politics and candidates than much of the electorate, noted Garry South, a Democratic strategist.

“To the average Democratic voter, these three candidates are kind of a blur,” he said. “The people who show up at state party conventions, they’re going to be pretty knowledgeable.”

Yet many attendees were undecided.

“I like all three of them,” said Aimee Powers, 43, of Burbank, who works as project manager for a tech company. “I really would love to see a woman in the seat. But Adam Schiff is also my congressman, and I really appreciate the work that he’s done. So it’s a tough decision.”

Many likely California voters are undecided about whom they support to replace Feinstein, according to a recent poll by the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies, co-sponsored by the Los Angeles Times.

GOP attorney Eric Early — the sole prominent Republican in the race — won the backing of 18% of likely voters. The three Democrats divided support among a greater pool of likely voters, with Porter at 17%, Schiff at 14% and Lee at 9%. (The remainder were undecided or said they plan to vote for someone else.)

Women, those between the ages of 18 and 49, and Orange County residents had greater affinity for Porter. Schiff had strength among likely voters 65 and older, as well as Los Angeles County residents. Lee had strong backing from Black voters.

None of the Senate candidates were official speakers at the convention, the first in-person gathering of state Democrats since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Still, the candidates were top attractions at the gathering as they skittered around the hallways, trailed by chanting and sign-waving supporters; visited caucus groups to make their case; and hosted parties and meet-and-greets.

All three candidates addressed the women’s caucus, the largest in the state party, which had an overflow crowd of several hundred people packed in a hotel ballroom.

Schiff applauded the Woman’s March the day after President Trump’s 2017 inauguration, saying it made a critical difference in the nation’s politics.

“And you ran that orange-haired SOB out of town,” he said, before mentioning former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who has endorsed his bid.

“I also want to thank the greatest speaker of the House of Representatives of all time, Nancy Pelosi,” he said. “And I say that not just because she makes great endorsements, but because she makes great history.”

Schiff received a warm reception, but the crowd roared as Porter and Lee spoke. Both mentioned that their experiences as single moms shaped their priorities as elected officials.

“We need to shake up Washington,” Porter said. “There is no doubt that Washington caters to the desires of billionaires and corporate special interests while leaving our families behind.”

“Tell it, Katie!” a woman in the audience shouted.

“I am not afraid to shake up the status quo and do things differently,” Porter said, adding that she has never taken donations from corporate PACs, federal lobbyists and executives who work in “Big Oil, big banks or Big Pharma.”

Lee — best known for being the sole vote against giving President George W. Bush broad war powers after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks — highlighted her work in the California Legislature getting a Republican governor to sign legislation she had written, including the California Violence Against Women Act and a bill enhancing penalties for people who block access to abortion clinics.

“We’re not looking back on this campaign,” Lee said. “But I want you to look at what I have done as a progressive Black woman, both in the Legislature and in Congress, to know that I’m going to stand my ground. I have convictions and courage. And it’s an indicator of what I will do in the future.”

Lee is viewed as an underdog in the race, in part because she doesn’t have the fundraising record of Schiff or Porter. But she and her supporters reject that assumption because of her long, consistent history.

“Barbara Lee isn’t new to this. She’s true to this,” state Controller Malia Cohen said at Lee’s reception Friday night, which drew hundreds of conventioneers. “This is a real progressive.”

It was a clear swipe at Schiff, who has the support of much of the Democratic establishment and is a former member of the centrist Blue Dog Coalition. In January, he applied to join the Congressional Progressive Caucus but later withdrew his application. Lee and Porter have been members of the group for some time.

Schiff appeared to be burnishing his progressive credentials at the convention, signing a pledge to not accept donations of more than $200 during this campaign from executives, lobbyists and political action committees in the oil, gas and coal industries. It’s the first time he has signed the pledge; Lee and Porter have done so previously.

Schiff, while best known for his work on the Trump impeachments, said climate concerns are among his top priorities, because “if we don’t save our planet, none of the other things are going to matter very much at the end of the day.”

And then, hours later, he went from green to blue. A crowd of about 100 gathered for Schiff’s “comedy intervention.” The congressman’s stand-up set lasted about 8½ minutes and drew laughs as well as groans.

Schiff joked that his wife, Eve, is more conservative than him and had recently told him she was against same-sex marriage: “She said, ‘Adam, we’ve been married for 25 years. We’ve been having the same sex for 25 years. And I just think there’s got to be a better way.’”

The official convention programming focused largely on celebrating Pelosi: Swag bags and signs featured stylized images of the San Franciscan who made history by becoming the first woman to hold the speaker’s gavel. Prominent Democrats lauded her career in a video; she and Hollywood mega-donor Jeffrey Katzenberg were spotted lunching nearby at Langer’s, with a #19 sandwich (pastrami, Swiss, coleslaw and Russian dressing) on the table.

Though Pelosi hasn’t announced whether she plans on retiring before her term ends in early 2025, Feinstein has said she will not seek another term. Yet there was scant mention at the convention of the 89-year-old Feinstein, a towering figure in California politics for decades who has clashed with the party’s left wing.

State Treasurer Fiona Ma hosted a Bingo night Friday with the names of prominent Democrats replacing the numbers on the cards. When Feinstein’s name was called, a number of attendees booed.

It’s not the first time. Feinstein was jeered on the convention floor in 1990 as she stated her support for the death penalty during an unsuccessful gubernatorial run. In 2018, the party endorsed a liberal challenger over the longtime incumbent, an embarrassing rebuke.

But now it’s different, with Feinstein facing significant health issues. She wasn’t in the nation’s capital for nearly three months this year as she recuperated from shingles — an absence that allowed Republicans to block some of President Biden’s judicial nominees. Feinstein’s recent return to Washington, D.C., has not abated concerns about her fitness for the job.

Janet Fields of Long Beach said she had struggled with the news about Feinstein’s health issues but ultimately decided that the senator should step down because of the delays in confirming Biden’s judicial nominees.

“I’m torn, because it’s very sad,” said Fields, the legislative and political co-chair of Communication Workers of America Local 9588. “She’s one of the greatest. How do you kick out one of the greatest?”