For the first time during her long tenure in our nation's capital, Sen. Dianne Feinstein is suffering a serious drop in popularity.
"It’s waning because she’s a woman, number one, and I want to make that point," said Barbara O’Connor, political science professor emeritus at Sacramento State and veteran of California’s political scene.
Progressives in the Democratic Party are more critical than ever of Feinstein’s moderate view in this latest IGS Berkeley poll, as just 35 percent approve of the senior senator's work.
"I think women get treated unfairly in this respect and you can certainly see her age, and there are a lot people that want her seat," O’Connor said. "She has seniority. That’s the way the Senate works."
The poll found that 45 percent of the state’s registered voters disapprove of Feinstein’s job performance, with just 35 percent approval. Three years ago, 48 percent of Californians approved of Feinstein's work.
O’Connor expects Feinstein to hang in there at least one more year to show her California Senate colleague, the newly-appointed Alex Padilla, the ropes.
"I think she should not run again," O’Connor said of Feinstein’s prospects of a 2024 campaign. In December, Feinstein, 87, said she hasn't thought about retiring before her term ends in 2024.
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