An image of JD Vance allegedly dressed as a woman and wearing a blonde wig was posted to X, formerly known as Twitter, on Sunday. The unconfirmed image quickly picked up steam and began trending under the hashtag #SofaLoren, a reference to false claims that the Republican senator had sex with a couch.
A spokesperson for the Republican vice presidential pick did not deny the photo’s authenticity when approached by the Daily Beast, and did not offer any further comment.
The source who surfaced the alleged photo, Travis Whitfill, says the picture was taken by a fellow Yale classmate in 2012, when Vance was attending law school at the university. Whitfill then sent it to podcast host Matt Bernstein, who posted it to X.
“It’s from a group chat of Vance’s fellow classmates and is from a friend of a friend,” he told the Daily Beast. “I believe it was grabbed from Facebook and was taken at a Halloween party.”
Many commenters online connected Vance’s alleged history of cross-dressing with his legislative history—which has long been a point of concern for LGBTQ+ advocacy groups.
The Ohio senator introduced the “Protect Children’s Innocence Act,” which aims to criminalize medical institutions that provide gender-affirming care to minors.
The Republican vice presidential pick also supports measures to limit classroom discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity, and labeled critics of so-called “don’t say gay” legislation “groomers.”
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Source Agencies
