History-making LA Mayor Karen Bass becomes latest high-level elected official in California to throw her support behind Lee’s U.S. Senate campaign

Los Angeles, CA – Today, Congresswoman and U.S. Senate candidate Barbara Lee announced she has been endorsed by Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass.

Bass, a longtime advocate for civil and human rights and known as a coalition-builder in her career in public service, is the history-making first woman and second African American to serve as Mayor of Los Angeles. Prior to being mayor, she served as the first Black woman Speaker in the California State Assembly before being elected to Congress in 2010 to represent Los Angeles and Culver City, where she is credited by the LA Times with shepherding through the passage of the “most significant child welfare policy reform in decades.”

“Barbara Lee and I have been friends for decades, and I am proud to endorse her for U.S. Senate,” said Bass. “As her colleague in Congress, I saw her leadership firsthand. Her work in a divided government to secure billions of dollars in COVID relief for underserved communities is just one example of the type of principled and tenacious leadership she will bring to California as our next U.S. Senator. “

“Mayor Bass’s work to serve Californians – as an Assemblywoman and Congresswoman, and now as Mayor – and to break monumental barriers while doing so, has been an inspiration to me and so many others. I’m honored to have her support of my campaign,” said Lee. “In the U.S. Senate, I’ll bring my lived experience as a Black woman and a strong, progressive leader who has delivered real change to make sure every Californian has a voice and a seat at the table. I look forward to working alongside Mayor Bass to deliver policies that create opportunity for everyone.”

The endorsement comes just days after Lee’s official declaration for the U.S Senate on February 21.

Lee enters the race for U.S. Senate with a long and growing list of supporters, including California Attorney General Rob Bonta, Controller Malia Cohen, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, state senators Anna Caballero and Nancy Skinner, Assemblywoman Mia Bonta, San Francisco Mayor London Breed, Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, San Bernardino Mayor Helen Tran, Redlands Mayor Eddie Tejeda, Dolores Huerta, Basil Kimbrew, Chair California Democratic Party Veterans Caucus, Deepa Sharma, Chair California Democratic Party Asian Pacific Islander Caucus, Amar Shergill, Chair California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus, Tiffany Woods, Co-Chair California Democratic Party LGBTQ Caucus, California Legislative Black Caucus, and the Congressional Black Caucus PAC.