California's newly-appointed senator may not live in California at all

Laphonza Butler addresses a Biden-Harris campaign rally on the first anniversary of the Supreme Court's Dobbs v. Jackson decision which struck down a federal right to abortion at the Mayflower Hotel on June 23, 2023 in Washington, DC.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Following Sen. Dianne Feinstein's death, California Gov. Gavin Newsom must appoint a replacement.
Sunday evening, he announced that EMILYs List President Laphonza Butler would hold the seat.
FEC and voter registration records, however, indicate Butler lives in Maryland.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom's interim replacement for Sen. Dianne Feinstein doesn't appear to actually live in California, records show.

Feinstein died at the age of 90 years old on September 28. Though she had already announced that she would not be running for reelection for an additional term, her death required Newsom to appoint a temporary replacement for her until a special election can be held.

On Sunday night, Newsom announced his decision to appoint Laphonza Butler to fill Feinstein's seat in the interim. Before the appointment, Butler served as the president of EMILYs List, a group whose goal is to elect Democratic women to office who favor access to abortion.

But according to a filing with the Federal Election Commission from September 2023, Butler doesn't live in California, nor anywhere close to the state. Instead, it appears she lives in Silver Spring, Maryland, a Washington, DC suburb.

Laphonza Butler FEC — Federal Election Commission

Using the address listed in the FEC filing, it's possible to find Butler's voter registration in Maryland, which is as recent as September 2022 and classifies the Silver Spring address as her "residential" location.

Laphonza Butler Voter registration — Maryland state board of elections

Additionally, at the same time the news surrounding Butler's appointment broke, journalists discovered that Butler's profile on the website of EMILYs List disclosed that she was living in Maryland with her partner and their child. Shortly after this was pointed out online, EMILYs List removed that part from her biography. As of Sunday evening when Politico broke the news of her impending appointment, Butler's profile listed her location as "Maryland."

Newsom's office said in a statement that Butler will re-register to vote in California "before being sworn in."

"Butler is a longtime California resident and homeowner," Newsom spokesperson Izzy Gardon said in a statement. "She moved to the DC area when she became president of EMILY's List. Butler will re-register here before being sworn in."

Butler's decision may have little legal bearing. As the Congressional Research Service pointed out in 2015, federal courts have routinely rejected state-led efforts to impose additional qualifications on congressional candidates, including residency requirements. California's own summary of qualifications for its March 2024 Senate primary says there is no durational residency requirement.

Politically, Butler could face questions about her ties to the state. Residency questions are a timeless attack in US politics. A Tea Party-backed challenger used residency questions to help sink longtime Republican incumbent Sen. Richard Lugar in a fiercely contested 2012 Indiana GOP primary. A handful of other incumbents faced questions about how often they returned home during the 2014 midterms.

Politico reported that Newsom did not require her to agree to only serve as a caretaker senator, meaning she could decide to run for a full term. Californians will likely have to vote four times over the future of Feinstein's Senate seat next year, as a special election will likely determine who serves out the final weeks of Feinstein's term.

As of now, Rep. Adam Schiff is the best-funded hopeful to win a full term. Schiff has led in recent public polling and his campaign announced on Monday that it has $32 million at its disposal. Fellow House Democrats, Reps. Barbara Lee and Katie Porter, are also vying for a full term. Some Republicans are trying to coax former Los Angeles Dodgers great Steve Garvey to run. California has a so-called "jungle primary" system in which the top-two voter getters regardless of party advance to the general election.

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