California governor picks Alex Padilla to replace Kamala Harris in Senate

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has selected Secretary of State Alex Padilla to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.

In an announcement on his Twitter account, Newsom said of Padilla: “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.”

Padilla becomes California’s first Latino U.S. senator. The state has never had a Latino senator, even though the California is nearly 40% Latino.

The 47-year-old Democrat has served as secretary of state since 2015. He was previously a member of the Los Angeles City Council and was a state senator.

Since Harris’ departure, Newsom had faced some pressure to name a Latino or a Black woman as a replacement.

This story was originally published by Jermaine Ong at KGTV.