Dianne Feinstein Dead at 90: Four Interesting Facts About California Senator

Senator Dianne Feinstein passed away Thursday night at the age of 90, her office confirmed.

The California Democrat was the oldest member of Congress, taking office in 1992 and working under five presidential administrations.

During her political career, Feinstein was known for pushing to pass legislation to increase the fuel efficiency of cars and was a prominent voice in the fight for LGBTQ+ rights, including the effort to legalize same-sex marriage. She was also championed consumer advocacy and for pushing for stricter gun safety legislation.

In recent months, Feinstein's ability to perform her duties as a senator was questioned amid concerns about her age and health. Earlier this year, she announced she would not seek reelection and retire from Congress at the end of 2024.

Below are four interesting facts about the late senator.

She Was Jewish Standout at Catholic School

Feinstein, who was born into a Jewish family, was among the first non-Catholics to attend San Francisco's Convent of the Sacred Heart High School. In 1951, she was elected president of her class.

She Set a Senate Record

In 2012, Feinstein set the record for the largest number of popular votes in any U.S. Senate election when she received 7.86 million votes. The previous Senate record for popular votes was held by her then-colleague, former Democratic Senator Barbara Boxer of California.

She Attained Many "Firsts" as a Woman

In 1978, Feinstein became the first female to lead the San Francisco Board of Supervisors (She was elected to the board in 1969). Feinstein later became San Francisco's first female mayor and the first female U.S. senator from California.

Her time on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors also resulted in at least one assassination attempt on her life. In 1976, a bomb was planted in a window flower box outside her home by the New World Liberation Front, an anti-capitalist terrorist group, but it failed to explode. The group also reportedly shot out windows of a vacation house she owned.

She Presided Over a U.S. Presidential Inauguration

In 2009, she also became the first woman to preside over a U.S. presidential inauguration and acted as the day's Master of Ceremonies during Barack Obama's first inaugural ceremony.

Prior to the inauguration, tickets for the free event were advertised on websites such as eBay for a price of as much as $40,000. This led Feinstein to draft legislation to fight scalpers from selling tickets to the ceremony.

Update 09/29/23, 10:10 a.m. ET: This article was updated with more information.