Voters have decisively endorsed long-serving U.S.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, sending the powerful Democrat back to the
nation's capital for a fourth full term.
Feinstein handily beat Republican opponent Elizabeth Emken.
The popular 79-year-old former
San Francisco mayor campaigned on her legislative record over three
terms, especially on the economy and national security, as well as her
years in government.
Emken, 49, had presented herself
as a reform-minded outsider, but was ultimately unable to overcome the
relentless decline of the California Republican Party and her own lack
of experience.
An autism activist from the San
Francisco Bay Area suburb of Danville, Emken remained unknown to most
California voters. Her campaign struggled to stay out of the red while
Feinstein raised more than $8 million.
