'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/2wBDAAYEBQYFBAYGBQYHBwYIChAKCgkJChQODwwQFxQYGBcUFhYaHSUfGhsjHBYWICwgIyYnKSopGR8tMC0oMCUoKSj/2wBDAQcHBwoIChMKChMoGhYaKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCj/wgARCAAGAAoDASIAAhEBAxEB/8QAFgABAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMH/8QAFQEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQT/2gAMAwEAAhADEAAAAK64Vn//xAAhEAACAgECBwAAAAAAAAAAAAABAwIEABEhBQYHInGT4f/aAAgBAQABPwCrxV1jmLp2TJa03rjYPXBA7gE7jwdcKquuyoev7n//xAAXEQADAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQIE/9oACAECAQE/AM0pwf/EABcRAQEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIBACH/2gAIAQMBAT8ALRnLv//Z'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
On Monday, October 2, California Governor Gavin Newsom appointed American political strategist Laphonza Butler as the immediate replacement of Senator Dianne Feinstein, who died on September 29.
Laphonza Butler is popularly known as the President of EMILY’s List, an American political action committee (PAC) that aims to help elect Democratic female candidates who can advocate for abortion rights.
The Southern Mississippi native is a black woman and the first openly lesbian woman to represent the state of California in the Senate, as per Politico. She has a partner named Neneki Lee, with whom she shares a daughter.
All you need to know about Laphonza Butler’s partner, Neneki Lee
The 44-year-old new Senate-designate of California, Laphonza Butler, is an openly lesbian Black woman. She is married to Neneki Lee, and the couple shares an 8-year-old daughter named Nylah, as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle.
As per the website, Neneki Lee is the Director of the SEIU Public Services Division. In fact, it was at SEIU headquarters in Washington, DC, that Lee and Laphonza Butler first met. SEIU stands for Service Employees International Union, which is a labor union representing nearly two million workers spread over the USA and Canada and part of over 100 occupations.
As per Neneki Lee's official LinkedIn account, she is the National Division Director – Public Services at SEIU. Before that, she was the National Coordinator at the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions from 2010 to 2013. Lee also attended Spelman College and earned her bachelor’s degree in political science and government from Scripps College.
Exploring the life and career of Laphonza Butler
Laphonza Butler was born in Magnolia, Mississippi, and is the youngest of three siblings. She attended South Pike High School in her hometown and earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from the reputed Jackson State University.
Butler actively entered politics in 2018 when the then California Governor Jerry Brown appointed her to a 12-year term as the regent to the Board of the University of California. However, she resigned from her role in 2021.
As per the university’s official website, Laphonza Butler is best known as the President of EMILY’s List, a role in which she has served since 2021. She became the first black woman and a mother to serve in that position. Her role in the organization is "to lead efforts to elect Democratic pro-choice women across the country, up and down the ballot.”
Maryland resident Butler has also served as the Director of Public Policy and Campaigns for Airbnb. She was also a partner at SCRB Strategies, a company dealing with “complex communications challenges for political campaigns, companies, and organizations” between 2019 and 2020.
The new Senator of California also served as the President of SEIU Local 2015, a union representing over 325,000 nursing home and home-care employees across California. Before that, she was the President of SEIU United Long Term Care Workers (ULTCW) for seven years.
In addition, she served as the Director of SEIU’s Property Services Division and was responsible for the welfare of janitors, security officers, food service workers, and more across the nation.
Laphonza Butler was also the Vice President of SEIU International and President of the SEIU California State Council. In addition, she served as a board member of the National Children’s Defense Fund, BLACK PAC, and the Bay Area Economic Council Institute.
Furthermore, Butler is the former Director of the Federal Reserve System’s Los Angeles office and a fellow at MIT’s Community Innovators Lab.
The Democrat will serve as the Senate-designate of California until the end of the late Dianne Feinstein’s term in January 2025. However, whether or not she will be able to compete in the Senatorial Election in November 2024 remains unclear, as per The Guardian.
According to Politico, she is scheduled to be sworn into the California Senate by Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday, October 4. The duo’s friendship goes back to 2020, when the former helped the latter as a senior strategist during that year’s presidential campaign.
