Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) endorsed Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) for California’s Senate race in 2024, but behind the scenes, the powerful Democrat appears to be working to ensure he is the Golden State’s next senator.
Pelosi’s oldest daughter, Nancy Corinne Prowda, is helping Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) recover from her battle with shingles and keep up with her Senate duties, per Politico. While the senior senator from California remains in office, the three representatives jockeying to take her seat next are staying confined to the campaign trail — a factor that aids Pelosi’s favored pick.
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Feinstein, 89, was away from the Senate for months with the illness but has returned to her duties despite calls from some Democrats for the prominent California politician to step down.
The outlet reports the aid from the Pelosi family is due to the “long and friendly relationship between Feinstein and the Pelosis” but that helping Feinstein keep up with her Senate duties could have a boost to Schiff’s chances as well.
“It’s very tricky, and political, because they want her to stay,” a confidant of the Pelosi family said. “The political thinking is that if DiFi stays as long as possible, it helps Schiff as well.”
If Feinstein were to step down from her Senate seat before her term expires in January 2025, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) would be tasked with appointing a successor, and he has already vowed to select a black woman if he gets the opportunity. The only declared senatorial candidate who meets that standard is Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA).
Feinstein announced earlier this year she would not be seeking an additional term, and Schiff is seen as the favorite for the seat, but if Lee were to be appointed to the seat, it could derail his chances.
Feinstein’s office did confirm to Politico that Prowda has been aiding the senator but emphasized the friendship between Feinstein and the Pelosis was the contributing factor, not the politics.
While Feinstein was away from the Senate, Pelosi defended the senator from calls to resign and suggested sexism may be at the root of those calls for her to step down.
“She deserves the respect to get well and be back on duty, and it’s interesting to me. I don’t know what political agendas are at work that are going after Sen. Feinstein in that way,” Pelosi said. “I’ve never seen them go after a man who was sick in the Senate in that way.”
In her defense of Feinstein, Pelosi commended Feinstein as a “champion for California” and praised her years of service to the Golden State.
“Sen. Feinstein has been a champion for California,” she said. “For 20 years, I have been the leader or the speaker of the House fighting for California, and I have seen up close and firsthand her great leadership for our country and especially for our state of California.”
When Pelosi announced she would be stepping down from Democratic leadership in November 2022, Feinstein praised Pelosi and called the then-House speaker’s decision to step down “personally very difficult for me because she has done so much good for the country and for the progress of women.”
“I feel very close to the Pelosi family, including her husband Paul and their wonderful children,” Feinstein said. “I know they’re all so proud of her. Nancy has served in House Democratic leadership for more than two decades.”
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“I’m proud to call Nancy a friend and look forward to continuing to work with her, both here in Congress and back home,” Feinstein said.
Feinstein has been a senator for the Golden State since 1992 and is the oldest senator in the chamber.
