Gov. David Paterson appointed Democratic U.S. Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand on January 23 to fill New York’s vacant Senate seat, finally settling on a woman from a largely rural, eastern district of the state to replace Hillary Rodham Clinton.
“I appreciate the opportunity that you have afforded me and the trust that you have placed in me,” she told Paterson. “I realize that for many New Yorkers, this is the first time you’ve heard my name and you don’t know much about me.”