"She leaves a very long legacy": Local community reacts to Sen. Feinstein's retirement announcement
DAVIS — Dianne Feinstein, California's longest-serving U.S. senator, said she will not seek reelection.
Feinstein has been a senator for more than 30 years and was mayor of San Francisco for a decade before that.
"She leaves a very long legacy," said UC Davis student Francis Haydock.
Haydock wasn't even born yet when Feinstein was first elected to the U.S. Senate.
"I, personally, am saddened to sort of see this legacy come to an end," she said.
But she is now looking forward to seeing someone closer to her age fill the senate seat.
"A lot of people who are older can't change as fast as the world is changing now, and so I think we do need to have young people in office," Haydock said.
Feinstein is currently 89 years old and others don't see her age as a barrier.
"As someone who is not young, I don't think age is all that important," Davis resident Donna Neville said. "I think with age comes a great deal of wisdom."
Neville remembers the 1992 election when Feinstein and Barbara Boxer became California's first two female senators in what was dubbed "the year of the woman." Feinstein is now the country's longest-serving female senator.
"She's paved the way for other women to come up in politics and to be powerful impact makers in the world," Neville said.
California Congressman Adam Schiff (D) praised all that Feinstein has done in the Senate.
"Her work to ban assault weapons, her work to protect LGBTQ rights, her work to help protect California from wildfires, and the list goes on and on," he said.
He is now running for the open 2024 Senate seat, holding a campaign stop in Davis.
Representative Katie Porter is also running and several others are expected to enter the race.
"I certainly think it will be very competitive," Schiff said.
Deciding who will replace Feinstein could be a tough decision for voters
"We need someone who's a real change maker, someone who can really tackle the issues we're trying to deal with head-on," Neville said.
"It's going to be really interesting to see how the race unfolds in the next year and a half," Haydock said.
Feinstein still has just under two years left in office and said she plans on focusing on preventing wildfires, homelessness and gun violence.
