Dianne Feinstein, Stalwart California Senator, Passes Away at 90

Dianne Feinstein, the venerable member of the U.S. Senate and California’s longest-tenured senator, has passed away at the age of 90, according to sources who informed NBC News on Friday.

Senator Feinstein's demise concludes an illustrious political journey that spanned over five decades, dotted with significant legislative milestones, particularly in the realms of gun control and environmental protection. She had already expressed intentions to retire at the close of her ongoing term in 2024.

With her Senate seat now vacant, it falls upon California Governor Gavin Newsom to name an interim replacement.

Born and raised in San Francisco, Feinstein blazed a trail for women in American politics. In 1978, after two unsuccessful mayoral campaigns, she was elected as the president of San Francisco’s board of supervisors, a title no woman had previously held. Fate further thrust her into the limelight when, later the same year, Mayor George Moscone and her fellow supervisor, Harvey Milk, were tragically assassinated by former board member, Dan White. A somber Feinstein would be the first to disclose the killings to the media. The ensuing week witnessed her appointment as mayor, yet again the first woman to assume this role.

Although these events inadvertently catalyzed Feinstein's political ascent, the scars remained. Reflecting on that harrowing day, Feinstein, in a 2017 CNN interview, remarked, "I never really talk about this."

Feinstein's pioneering journey persisted on the national stage. Although her gubernatorial aspirations in 1990 were unfulfilled, by 1992 she was elected to the U.S. Senate, becoming California’s inaugural female senator. This watershed moment was soon followed by the swearing-in of the state's second female senator, Barbara Boxer, making California the maiden U.S. state to have both its Senate seats occupied by women. Their elections were seminal in defining 1992 as the "Year of the Woman", with the Senate witnessing a dramatic increase in female representation.

Senator Feinstein’s legislative prowess in the Senate is epitomized by her drafting and advocacy of the 1994 assault weapons ban. While it marked a significant move towards stringent gun control, compromises, such as a 10-year sunset clause, were made before then-President Bill Clinton signed it into law. This ban saw its expiration in 2004, under President George W. Bush's tenure.

Among other notable legislative feats were Feinstein's endeavors to conserve vast expanses of California’s desert, instituting a national AMBER alert system, reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act, and advocating for transparency regarding the CIA's torture methods.

Feinstein’s centrist political stance garnered immense popularity in the 1990s and early 2000s. However, as California’s political hues intensified, her moderate views were met with increasing disfavor. Her final years in office were overshadowed by questions about her cognitive health. An April 2022 report by the San Francisco Chronicle alluded to concerns among Democratic peers about her mental sharpness. Although Feinstein vouched for her competency, she did concede to experiencing a challenging phase due to her late husband, financier Richard Blum’s, cancer ordeal.

By the time of her announcement regarding her 2024 retirement, several Democrats had already initiated their campaigns to fill her esteemed shoes.