On Sunday, a picture of JD Vance allegedly dressed as a woman and wearing a blonde wig was posted on X, formerly Twitter. The unverified image quickly gained popularity and became a trending topic under the hashtag #SofaLoren, a reference to famous Italian actress Sophia Loren and false claims that the Republican senator had sex with a sofa.
When asked by The Daily Beast, a spokesman for the Republican vice president-elect did not deny the authenticity of the photo and did not provide further comment.
The source that brought the alleged photo to light Travis Whitfieldsays the photo was taken by a fellow student at Yale in 2012 when Vance was studying law there. Whitfill then sent it to podcast host Matt Bernstein, who posted it on X.
“It’s from a group chat of Vance’s classmates and it’s from a friend of a friend,” he told the Daily Beast. “I believe it was stolen from Facebook and taken at a Halloween party.”
Many commentators online linked Vance’s alleged past as a cross-dresser to his past as a lawmaker – which has long been a cause for concern for LGBTQ advocacy groups.
The Ohio senator has introduced the Protect Children’s Innocence Act, which aims to criminalize medical facilities that provide gender-affirming treatment to minors.
The Republican vice president-elect also supports measures to restrict discussions about sexual orientation and gender identity in the classroom and described critics of the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” legislation as “Snow groomers.”
