California Senator Dianne Feinstein said on Saturday that she believes that Russia tried to interfere in the Nov. 8 Presidential election and that their efforts ultimately altered its outcome.

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Speaking during a TV interview, Feinstein, who is also on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said that she had been astonished at what has been a two-year "Russian effort to spear-fish, to hack, to provide disinformation, propaganda wherever it really could."

"And I think this has been a very sophisticated effort," Feinstein added.

On Friday, the Senate Intelligence Committee announced that it will investigate the involvement of Russian actors in the US election, including any intelligence regarding links between Russia and individuals associated with political campaigns.

When asked if the Senate Intelligence Committee would probe any specific allegations that Donald Trump's campaign team was in contact with Russian agents, Feinstein said that she was not in a position to answer the question, as the issue is yet to be discussed.

Feinstein said that she was hopeful that the investigation into Russia's interference in the election would be "full and robust," but if it is not, she and Senator Mark Warner, who is the vice-chairman of the Senate Intelligence committee, will call for an independent panel to investigate the issue.

"I'm certainly not gonna leave this in limbo, because this is the future of America, it's the future of democracy," Feinstein promised, adding that the United States has got huge problems if it cannot carry out an election without disinformation being pumped into it by another country.

Feinstein also voiced her belief that the FBI's announcement in late October that it had found new emails related to the investigations on Hillary Clinton's private email server "did have an impact" on the election's outcome.

Clinton's advisors said that their internal polling showed them winning the election prior to the announcement by FBI Director James Comey. However, Feinstein was not willing to call for Comey's resignation, saying that decision would come when everybody learns much more about what drove his decision.

TagsUS, Russia, Senate Intelligence Committee