The celebration of A

performing arts magnet film and television production magnet

school in downtown Los Angeles had the feel of a campaign rally. Celebrities George Clooney and Eva Longoria and politicians including Gov. Gavin Newsom mingled with fans before taking the stage. At the center of it all was California’s newest senator, Laphonza Butler.

“Young people, I stood before you as the third black woman to ever serve in the United States Senate,” Butler said to loud applause. “The quote I always refer to when I am challenged with something that is difficult for me and that I may never have imagined doing as a United States Senator, if your actions inspire others to learn more, to do more do, dream more and become more “You are a leader.”

Butler was catapulted into the political spotlight in early October, just days after the death of longtime California Senator Dianne Feinstein, when Newsom appointed her to fill the Senate vacancy. Although Butler’s career is steeped in politics, she is a newcomer to public office.

Butler did not respond when asked whether she planned to run for the seat in the 2024 election. But she certainly looked like a candidate during her first full week in office, which coincided with a Senate recess. The former president of EMILY’s List took advantage of this opportunity by crisscrossing California and attending public and private events large and small in Orange, Los Angeles and San Francisco counties, among others.

As of Sunday, three Democratic candidates are already entering the 2024 Reps race. Adam B. Schiff of Burbank, Katie Porter of Irvine and Barbara Lee of Oakland said Butler was free to enter the race and that would not affect their plans change. On Tuesday, another Senate Republican hopeful, Steve Garvey, a Dodger All-Star, entered the fray.

Yet Butler’s schedule, which was packed with meetings with labor and activist groups whose support would be essential to virtually any Senate run for office in California, suggested a candidate in waiting and quietly maneuvering for a future campaign, not a caretaker who floated through the final year of Feinstein’s term. .

Butler took the stage Friday alongside celebrities deeply involved in Democratic politics.

The official purpose of the event: to celebrate a film and television magnet school in downtown Los Angeles

Clooney, the magnet program’s founder, and board members Longoria, Don Cheadle and Kerry Washington are longtime donors to Democratic politicians and causes, and outspoken liberal advocates. Butler said she was “fan-girling” when she proposed to Cheadle.

Last week, after Butler attended Feinstein’s funeral in San Francisco, she turned her attention to other critical Democratic constituencies with fundraising and organizational prowess.

She met with the board of directors of the California Teachers Assn. a powerful statewide union representing approximately 300,000 teachers. On Thursday, she met with leadership at Planned Parenthood’s California branch. On Friday, she met with the board of Equality California, which advocates for the rights of LGBTQ+ people and whose political action committee endorses candidates and raises money.

This week, she also met with elected officials and union leaders from the politically powerful Service Employees International Union and the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor.

As she considers a run for Senate, Butler is leaning on her labor roots. The first tweet from her official Senate record placed her firmly on the side of the 75,000 striking Kaiser Permanente workers, building on her early career as an organizer and union president. On Friday, the network of unions representing these workers announced that they had reached a preliminary agreement.

If she were to run, Butler wouldn’t be the only candidate with labor support. Schiff has the support of seven unions across the state, including the recent endorsement of the state’s Teamsters chapter, which has about 200,000 members. This week, Porter got a nod from the National Union of Healthcare Workers, which represents nearly 20,000 health care workers in the state.

Butler would need help from the groups and people she met this week to make up for the enormous fundraising advantage that both Schiff and Porter possess.

When Butler walked into SEIU 2015 headquarters in Westlake on Tuesday, she knew the name of the receptionist and every other staff member in the building, said David Green, president of SEIU Local 721, whose 98,000 members make it the largest public sector union in Making Southern California.

“She hasn’t forgotten where she came from,” Green said. After leading Local 2015 for four years, she worked as a political consultant for Uber and other companies, then as an executive at AirBnB, before joining then-Sen. Kamala Harris’ failed presidential campaign.

At the meeting this week, Butler told union leaders she appreciated their support and that they should “keep the lines of communication open.”

For Butler, meeting SEIU Brass in LA is both a trip down memory lane and a signal to her future goals.

SEIU pours millions of dollars into state elections each cycle, and the 700,000 members in the state who look to their union’s support to guide their decisions at the ballot box make it a sizable voting bloc. The union has given a boost to State Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta and backed Newsom’s successful effort to fend off the 2021 recall campaign with millions of dollars in cash and on-the-ground support.

Butler attended a similar meeting with union members and elected officials at SEIU 1021’s Potrero Hill headquarters in San Francisco on Wednesday evening. The day before, she had contacted the union’s leadership and told them she would be in the area. She “wanted to make sure she had contact with her siblings,” said Theresa Rutherford, president of SEIU 1021.

“It was definitely a point of pride that one of us was promoted to this high position,” Rutherford added. “We think drills are good for working people.”

During the meeting, San Francisco County Supervisors Myrna Melgar and Connie Chan chatted with the newly appointed senator, whom they described as disarmingly personable. Melgar described Butler’s personality as a departure from Feinstein’s formal and courtly demeanor.

“I was a great admirer of Dianne, yes, but what a difference,” said Melgar, who had never met Butler before. “She was able to connect all these big structural political issues to her personal life and experiences.”

Melgar respects Schiff, Porter and Lee, but she would like to support someone who is both younger and of color. Butler impressed Melgar, who said she would support her if the appointed senator testified.

Both Melgar and Chan said Butler did not discuss her plans. Chan, who supports the ship, said she and Butler had not been in contact since she worked as then-San Francisco’s

District Attorney Dist. Atty

. Kamala Harris’ liaison to the Asian American community.

“It was a historic moment,” Chan said, especially because her 10-year-old son was by her side.

Still, Chan, like many other politicians who have already endorsed Senate candidates, will have a difficult choice to make if Butler intervenes.

“If she gets in, I’ll cross that bridge,” she said.