Karen Bass

(Newser) - Los Angeles' first female mayor, and just the second Black mayor for the California city, was sworn in by Vice President Kamala Harris in a Sunday ceremony. Her first act? Karen Bass declared a state of emergency on homelessness in the city, the New York Times reports. Bass, who was...

(Newser) - Should California get its first Latino US senator, or should the 100-member chamber maintain one Black woman's voice? That's a weight on California Gov. Gavin Newsom's shoulders as he considers his pick to serve out the rest of Vice President-elect Kamala Harris' Senate term through 2022. That...

(Newser) - A new figure is rising among possible candidates to be Joe Biden's running mate. As chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, California Rep. Karen Bass has led the Democrats' response to nationwide protests and helped get a police reform bill through the House. The 66-year-old former speaker of the...