Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) on Tuesday easily defeated his colleagues Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.) and Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) in the hotly contested race to fill the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s seat.
With early results in, Schiff received a narrow plurality of the vote—33%—over Porter’s 14% and Lee’s 7%. He will go on to face Republican and former Los Angeles Dodger Steve Garvey in the general election in November.
Garvey received a slightly smaller number of votes, 32%, in California’s top-two primary system in which the top two candidates advance regardless of party preference.
But Schiff’s victory speech late Tuesday was disrupted by protesters who loudly chanted “ceasefire now,” while one held up a banner that read, “never again is now,” a phrase that invokes the Holocaust.
“We are so lucky, so lucky to live in a democracy where we all have the right to protest,” Schiff said amid the chants. “We’re so lucky to live in that kind of democracy and we want to make sure that we keep this kind of democracy.”
According to video of the speech, as Schiff continued his speech, he was continually interrupted by the protesters.
Unlike his two Democratic rivals, Schiff opposed calls for a ceasefire in Gaza, arguing instead for humanitarian pauses for aid delivery and underscoring his stance on Israel’s right to defend itself.
“With Hamas promising to attack Israel again and again, he has not supported calls for a permanent cease-fire that would preserve Hamas terrorist governance in Gaza and the continued detention of over a hundred hostages, including Americans,” campaign spokesperson Marisol Samayoa told Politico in December.
Lee, on the other hand, known for her lone vote against the endless war after 9/11, emphasized her longstanding anti-war position and has remained steadfast in calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Porter took a more moderate approach than Lee, advocating for a ceasefire but with certain conditions met, such as the release of all hostages held by Hamas.
California voters could not participate in the “uncommitted” protest vote against President Joe Biden, but some groups suggested voters write in “ceasefire.”
However, California leaders with the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) instead called for Democratic voters opposing Biden’s handling of Israel and Gaza to leave the presidential race blank instead.
“We are asking all of our voters to vote down-ballot, and many of them are looking for candidates who are asking or calling for a ceasefire,” Al Jabbar, secretary of the CAIR, California PAC, told CalMatters.
According to early results from California’s primary, Biden received 1.6 million votes. In the Senate race, however, a total of over 2 million votes were cast between Schiff, Porter, and Lee.
