Battle for Dianne Feinstein's Senate seat begins to close in California

Dianne Feinstein held her Senate seat for 30 years until her death last September.

Everything seems to indicate that a man will take over from the legendary legislator.

The race to occupy one of the most important seats for Democrats is beginning to be defined.

After months of tough competition, the polls are beginning to outline those who will play for a place on the November ballot in the primaries on Super Tuesday, March 5.

Leading this race are Congressman Adam Schiff, who became the public face of the prosecution in Donald Trump's first

, and Steve Garvey, a former baseball player who has entered politics on the Republican side.

No Republican has won a seat in the upper house in 36 years.

Since 2006, the party has not won a single national election in California, an entity that has 22 million registered voters.

To change this history marked by defeats, the organization has taken a sports celebrity off the bench.

Garvey, 75, was known on the diamond as Mr. Clean, for the elegant style he displayed in 18 seasons in which he played for two California teams, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres.

In 1974 he was awarded the National League MVP.

For the first time, the Republicans have a candidate whose last name is known by part of the electorate.

Mr. Clean's debut has not been without blemish.

His arrival in politics has been accompanied by some blows.

The press and some of his opponents questioned the traditional values ​​that he claims to defend by reminding him that he had a couple of children out of wedlock.

The scandal had first broken in the late 1980s.

Now it resurfaces in the middle of the campaign.

The children resulting from these adventures have spoken to the press for the first time.

FILE - Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., during a hearing at the Capitol in Washington, on June 21, 2022. Rep. Schiff, who rose to national prominence as the lead prosecutor in President Donald Trump's first impeachment trial, announced Thursday , Jan. 26, 2023, that he is seeking the US Senate seat currently held by Sen.

Dianne Feinstein.

(AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)J.

Scott Applewhite (AP)

“When we were young, multiple efforts were made, through lawyers, to meet or at least have a call with Mr. Garvey, but he rejected every opportunity,” two of the descendants of the 34-year-old baseball player told Los

.

“It is not authentic [...] the image of a loving family man, I would not like the people of the State to have that impression of him because he hit the ball well,” the candidate's first-born daughter, Krisha, told the same newspaper. Garvey.

Still, Garvey has a chance in the polls.

A survey published this Tuesday indicates that Garvey consolidates his position in second place in the race with 22% of the preferences.

In the lead is Schiff (28%), who is the strongest candidate to take Feinstein's seat.

, a measure specialized in political information, published this Monday a measurement that confirms these trends.

Garvey has grown 4% in recent weeks compared to 3% for Schiff.

These polls are bad news for the Democratic candidates who have been fighting for months with Schiff for the nomination.

These are Congresswomen Katie Porter and Barbara Lee, the only African American among the leading contenders.

The first has 16% in the polls and the second 9%, according to Inside California Politics and Emerson College.

However, 17% of voters have not yet decided who they will support in the Super Tuesday primaries, when 16 states and American Samoa will go to the polls to decide the primaries.

Laphonza Butler, the union leader who fills Feinstein's seat after his death, said in October that she was not running for office.

The announcement launched a tight race.

The Democratic and Republican candidates will appear on March 5 on the same ballot.

The two candidates who receive the most votes will then advance to the November general election.

Democrats are so strong in California that in the 2026 and 2018 elections there were only contenders from the same party.

Garvey could give Trump's party its best result in the region since 1988, when Pete Wilson managed to retain his seat in the upper house.

That was the last senator that Californians sent to Washington.

To change history, Garvey must score a

.

However, this was never his specialty on the diamond.

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