Katie Porter is a member of the United States House of Representatives from California. A Democrat, she currently holds a seat in the House from California's 47th District, which is based in Long Beach.
Prior to recent re-districting, she had been elected from the state's 45th District. But now it seems that Porter has her aim set on a seat which has a constituency with larger borders. Enough to encompass the entire State of California.
Launches campaign for a seat in the United States Senate
Katie Porter is officially running for the U.S. Senate.
The Senate seat in question is currently held by Dianne Feinstein, a fellow Democrat. Feinstein has been something of a heavyweight in the party and has chaired multiple Senate committees. But, as noted by Politico and The Hill, she is expected by many to retire rather than run for another term. The next race for the seat is scheduled for 2024.
The timing of Porter's candidacy announcement has caused a bit of controversy. It seemed to catch some onlookers off-guard that she would make her announcement before Feinstein makes hers. And it also came as California has been suffering the effect of catastrophic storms. Leading some to think it is in poor taste for her to launch a campaign in the midst of it all.
Porter was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2018, defeating Republican incumbent Mimi Walters. She has served as a member of the House Committees on Natural Resources and on Oversight and Reform. For the former, she would chair its Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations. In the case of the latter, she would become vice chair of its Subcommittee on Government Operations.
Porter has gained notoriety for her use of a whiteboard while questioning panelists during Committee hearings.
In the past, Porter interned for Iowa U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley. Grassley is currently the top-ranking Republican in the U.S. Senate. She also clerked for U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Richard S. Arnold.
Her mother was a television host
Katie Porter is a native of Fort Dodge in central Iowa. Her mother, Liz Porter, is a former co-host of the television show "Fons & Porter's Love of Quilting". Dan Porter, Katie's father, worked as a farmer and banker.
She would graduate from the famed boarding school Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts; near Boston. Porter followed that up with degrees from Yale University and Harvard Law School. At Harvard, she was taught by future Massachusetts U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren.
Porter would practice law with the firm Stoel Rives for a time. She would also go into academics, beginning with the University of Nevada, Las Vegas' William S. Boyd School of Law.
Followed by the University of Iowa College of Law and the University of California, Irvine School of Law. In 2012, Porter was appointed in California to monitor the implementation by banks of a massive mortgage settlement. She was appointed by California Attorney General (and future U.S. Senator and Vice President) Kamala Harris.
