Sen. Dianne Feinstein has passed away at 90-years-old.
Feinstein remained in office at the time of her death despite years of calls for her to resign from both sides of the aisle.
The California politician was in her sixth term, holding the office since 1992.
“Her career was one of many firsts. She was the first woman president of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, the first woman mayor of San Francisco, and one of two of the first women elected to the U.S. Senate from California,” ABC News reports.
As soon as news broke, tributes began to pour in.
“Dianne Feinstein, right from the start, was an icon for women in politics,” said former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, according to the ABC report.
Senator Chuck Schumer added, “She’s a legend. A legend in California as the first woman senator. A legend in the Senate. She was the leader on so many different issues.”
Feinstein had said she would retire from the Senate when her term was up in 2024.
“You know, there are times for all things under the sun, and I think that will be the right time,” Feinstein said.
The senator was absent from the Capitol for months earlier this year while battling shingles.
Feinstein was born Dianne Goldman in 1933. She was born and raised in San Francisco by a Russian Orthodox mother and Jewish father. She was married three times and had one daughter with her first husband.
One of her most widely known moves in the Senate was authoring the 2022 Respect for Marriage Act, which enshrined gay marriage equality into federal law. She also created the federal coordination of Amber Alerts to utilize the public in searches for missing children.
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