It came as no surprise, but Dianne Feinstein was re-elected Tuesday to her fourth sixth-term seat as U.S. senator representing California.
The 79-year-old San Francisco Democrat faced a little-known challenger: Elizabeth Emken, a 49-year-old Republican from Danville, a small suburb near Oakland.
For "Di-Fi" - as the veteran senator has been nicknamed - winning another election was long considered to be "cakewalk," said Larry Gerston, a political science professor at San Jose State University and an NBC political consultant.
Major mainstream newspapers including the Los Angeles Times, Sacramento Bee, San Jose Mercury News and San Francisco Chronicle have all endorsed Feinstein, too. Feinstein's campaign had raised nearly $14 million through Sept. 30, campaign records showed, while Emken had raised slightly more than $700,000.
Feinstein is probably best known for these roles: chairing the Senate Intelligence Committee, supporting same sex marriage and immigration reform, and working to improve California's infrastructure.
Emken, meanwhile, is a political novice.
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