Senator Laphonza Butler was appointed to serve California in Congress in 2023 to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Senator Dianne Feinstein and served through her resignation in 2024 (118th Congress). Before joining Congress, Butler was a union organizer; political campaign consultant and strategist; member of the University of California Board of Regents; and a nonprofit executive. Butler was the first openly LGBTQ+ African American to serve in the Senate. She earned a bachelor’s in political science from Jackson State University in Mississippi.
Laphonza Romanique Butler
(1979- )
California
Democrat
Senator
118th Congress (2023-2024)