Rep. Katie Porter, a progressive Democrat from California who gained national notoriety for her work on the House Oversight Committee, announced on Tuesday her intention to run for Senate in 2024, aimed at the seat held by 89-year-old Dianne Feinstein.
As Axios reported, neither of California's sitting senators have publicly announced their intention to leave their seats in the U.S. Senate.
The news from Porter could put pressure on Sen. Feinstein to make it clear to California if she does indeed intend to run for re-election.
Feinstein filed paperwork to run for re-election in 2021, which was considered more of a formality at the time.
The longtime senator's Communications Director Tom Mentzersaid, "In order to keep that account active, the senator has to maintain current filings with the FEC."
Porter, 49, is a third-term member of Congress who studied at Harvard University under Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, and she is the first announced challenger against Feinstein.
In a video announcing her campaign, Rep. Porter said the Senate has become a place where "rights get revoked, and special interests get rewarded."
Portersaid in the ad that she is leading the "fight to ban Congressional stock trading, because it's just wrong."
Porter promised to keephercampaign a "grassroots" effort, and said she would refuse corporate PAC money, donations from federal lobbyists, and money from executives of oil and pharmaceutical companies and what she calls "Wall Street" banks.
Sen. Feinstein said in a statement released by her office that she would “make an announcement concerning" plans for 2024, "at the appropriate time.”
Feinstein said she has been focused on the deadly storms that have been pummeling the California coastline this month, and that have killed at least 14 while sparking flood watches over 90% of the state.
Rep. Porter gained national attention during her time in Congress as videos were shared of her quick line of questioning style, that sometimes utilizes visual aids like a dry erase board, colloquially deemed her "Porter board."
In one example, she is seen on House television interrogating the former Celgene CEO Mark Alles, asking him various questions about pricing that went on at this pharmaceutical company.
Progressives online championed her style. Elle Magazine called her dry erase board the "Whiteboard of Justice."
In her accusations, claiming the CEO enriched himself by $500,000 by hiking the price of a chemotherapy drug called Revlimid.
She proceeds to write on the dry erase board the price of thedrug as it dramatically increased during a short window of years, asking the former CEO if the drug was improved, and why it increased in price so rapidly. The answer, it could be argued, was not clear.
There were a list of other moments like that on Capitol Hill that gained Porternotoriety among consumer advocates and those who follow the House progressive caucus.
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