Elected Vice President Kamala Harris submitted her resignation from her seat in the U.S. Senate on Monday, two days before she will be sworn in in her new role.
What’s next: California Gov. Gavin Newsom has named Secretary of State Alex Padilla to serve the rest of Harris’ term, which ends in 2022.
What they say: “While resigning from the Senate, I am preparing to take an oath that would allow me to preside,” Harris wrote in a farewell post.
- As Walter Mondale, who was appointed by the senator as vice-president, once remarked, the vice-presidency is the only office in our government that ‘belongs to the executive and the legislature’. “A responsibility that is greater with an equal number of Democrats and Republicans in the Senate,” she continued.
- “Since the founding of our country, there have been only 268 votes cast by a vice president. I intend to work tirelessly as your vice president, and, if necessary, the fulfillment of this constitutional duty.”
The whole picture: Harris will now make history as the first Black, first South Asian and first female vice president when she is inaugurated on January 20th. But her resignation from the Senate leaves only two black lawmakers in the chamber, until newly elected Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) Takes office.
- Harris is one of ten black lawmakers ever to serve in the Senate, and the second black woman in chamber history.
- Harris will have the power to take the Senate votes to his office, writes Axios’ Stef Kight. The responsibility has the potential to define her as vice president – and as a potential presidential candidate in 2024.
Go deeper: Tie is a political challenge for Harris