CALIFORNIA
      Nov. 6, 2018 Senate

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+Dianne Feinstein (D) i
 		6,019,422
 		54.16%
Kevin de León (D) 5,093,942
 		45.84%

11,113,364
Statement of Vote - November 6, 2018, General Electi<font size="-2"></font> Registered Voters: 19,696,371.  Total Voters: 12,712,542.
Plurality: 925,480 (8.33 percentage points)



Notes:  Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D), first elected in 1996 won a sixth term against state Sen. Kevin de León (D).  As in 2016, Republicans were shut out of the November Senate race due to California's top two primary system.

Feinstein, age 85, was the oldest currently serving U.S. Senator.  Some Democrats had hoped she would step aside to allow a fresh face to emerge.  One line of thinking had it that if she won re-election she will step down mid-way through her term, allowing likely Gov. Gavin Newsom to appoint her successor.  Feinstein was much in the news in Fall 2018 as ranking member of the Judiciary Committee during the Kavanaugh confirmation process.

de León ran as a progressive against the more moderate Feinstein.  He was first elected to the Assembly in 2006 and the Senate in 2010, and served as Senate President pro tem from Oct. 2014-March 2018. 

Three dozen candidates were on the June 5 primary ballot.  Feinstein, finishing first with 2.9 million votes (44.2%), and de Leon, second at 805,446 votes (12.1%), advanced to the general election.  Republicans' top finisher, James P. Bradley (R), a veteran and executive in the health care sector, was largely unknown and did not qualify for the November ballot, finishing third at 556,252 (8.3%).

In July, the California Democratic Party executive board endorsed de León over Feinnstein, however Feinstein had many endorsements from top Democrats as well as a significant fundraising advantage.

There was one debate, on Oct. 17 at the Public Policy Institute of California in San Francisco (>).

Significantly fewer votes were cast in this race than in the governor's race, 11.1 million compared to 12.4 million.


Campaign Managers:
Dianne Feinstein:  Jeff Millman
(Jan. 2018)  Vice president and chief communications officer for the LA 2028 Olympic Bid Committee, Aug. 2015-Jan. 2018.  Senior advisor to Mayor Eric Garcetti, July 2013-Aug. 2015.  Political consultant at Millman Communications, Dec. 2006-June 2013.  Press secretary and director of opposition research on Barbara Boxer for Senate 2010, May 2009-Aug. 2010.  Media coordinator for North Iowa and then Western North Carolina on Hillary Clinton for President, Nov. 2007-May 2008.  Press secretary for the California Democratic Party, June-Nov. 2006.  Communications aide on Hahn for Mayor, May 2004-June 2005.  Campaign deputy on Yes on Proposition 55, Nov. 2003-Apr. 2004.  Press aide on Californians Against the Costly Recall (Gray Davis), July-Oct. 2003.  Campaign deputy at The Strategy Group, July 2005-June 2006.   J.D. from Southwestern Law School, 2011; B.A. from University of Pennsylvania, 2003.  Interned at the DCCC (2002) and on the 2000 Democratic National Convention Committee.

Kevin de León:  Courtni Pugh
Partner at Hilltop Public Solutions from Aug. 2014, and heads California-based operations for the firm.  Deputy state director on Hillary for America, announced May 2016; also political advisor to California Senate Democrats in the 2016 cycle.  Executive director of SEIU Local 99, Sept. 2012-June 2014, after serving as special assistant to the previous executive director, Dec. 2010-Sept. 2012.  Ran labor’s independent expenditure campaign in support of Jerry Brown for Governor.  Executive director of the California State Council of the Service Employees International Union, June 2008-Oct. 2011.  Political director of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO, 2006-07.  Western region political director for SEIU, 2004-06.  California political director on John Edwards 2004 campaign.  Manager of government relations mCapitol Management (mCM), Inc.  National field director at Rock the Vote, 2001.  Deputy base vote director and national director of Asian Pacific American outreach at the DNC for the 2000 cycle.  Worked for Congressman Danny K. Davis (D-Chicago), including as legislative director, 1997-99.  Community organizer for the Chinese American Service League in Chicago, 1994-96.  B.A. in political science from Ball State University. 


See also:
Alex Seitz-Wald and Phil McCausland.  "California Democratic Party abandons incumbent Feinstein, endorses opponent."  NBC News, July 15, 2018.




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