California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s pick to replace the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein in the Senate has been quick to scrub online evidence that she actually lives in Maryland.
Screenshots of Laphonza Butler’s account on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, show that she still listed her location as “Maryland” on Sunday when news of her selection was first reported. Her account has since been updated and currently does not list any location.
Butler, who is president of the pro-abortion group EMILY’s List, has a bio on the organization’s website that was changed hours after the news of her Senate appointment came out, removing references to her living in Maryland. A previous version of her bio concluded with the sentence, “She lives in Maryland with her partner Neneki Lee and their daughter Nylah,” which has since been removed.
In addition to the online references to Maryland, a Federal Election Commission filing from EMILY’s List also identified Butler as a resident of Silver Spring, Maryland, as recently as Aug. 31.
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Neither EMILY’s List nor Butler immediately responded to questions from Fox News.
Newsom announced Butler’s appointment days after Feinstein died at the age of 90 last week. She is now expected to finish out the remainder of Feinstein’s term in Washington, D.C., ahead of the 2024 election. In a statement, the governor described Butler as an “advocate for women and girls, a second-generation fighter for working people, and a trusted adviser to Vice President Harris.”
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“As we mourn the enormous loss of Senator Feinstein, the very freedoms she fought for — reproductive freedom, equal protection, and safety from gun violence — have never been under greater assault,” Newsom added. “Laphonza will carry the baton left by Senator Feinstein, continue to break glass ceilings, and fight for all Californians in Washington D.C.”
Newsom’s office told Fox News Digital that Butler moved to the suburbs near Washington, D.C., when she became EMILY’s List president in 2021, and that she has a house in California. The governor’s office added that Butler will re-register to vote in California before she is sworn in.
Butler thanked Newsom for the appointment in a statement on Monday.
“I am honored to accept Gov. Newsom’s nomination to be a U.S. Senator for a state I have long called home,” she said.
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Feinstein died on Thursday after battling a series of illnesses. She was the oldest member of Congress and the longest-serving woman in the Senate.
Butler called Feinstein a “legendary figure for women in politics and around the country” in a statement posted after the senator’s death last week.
While Butler has never been elected to office, she has been involved in California politics for years. She served as a senior adviser to Harris’s 2020 presidential campaign while at the same time working at a political firm with strategists who have worked for Newsom and other prominent state Democrats. She also has two decades of experience in the labor movement, including formerly serving as a labor leader with SEIU 2015.
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