California's newly reelected Attorney General and former SF District Attorney Kamala Harris will, as predicted, be vying for the Senate seat being vacated by Barbara Boxer in 2016. She has succeeded in brokering the deal that will line up friend and potential opponent Gavin Newsom for the governorship — which may have been his first choice all along — and she made the formal announcement Tuesday via a new campaign website.

As CNN notes, "Harris's strong fundraising base in California from her two statewide runs and her close alliance with President Barack Obama, make her one of the most formidable candidates in the race." And as Matier & Ross pointed out the other day, she stands a good chance of winning over any SoCal candidates given the fact that Northern California, where much of her base lives, tends to have greater voter turnout.

But Harris's name has also been floated as an ideal choice as a potential successor to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's seat on the Supreme Court, should Ginsburg decide to retire — a chance of a lifetime that she may be foregoing by shooting for the Senate instead, which may be indicative of her longterm career goals. Last fall Harris also passed on the chance to step into Eric Holder's role as U.S. Attorney General, which President Obama might have wanted her for.

Potential opponents for the Senate seat include former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Congresswoman Jackie Speier, and billionaire climate change activist Tom Steyer. CNN also mentions "several members of the California congressional delegation" who have yet to be named.

Willie Brown suggested the other day that Jerry Brown ought to consider running for Senate to cap off his legacy, but that is highly unlikely to happen.

Both Boxer and Dianne Feinstein have represented California in the Senate for 23 years, since 1992. Feinstein, who will be 83 this year, will not complete her current term until 2018.