Friendship Amidst Political Change

Senator JD Vance, the Republican vice-presidential candidate, and Sofia Nelson, his transgender classmate at Yale Law School, forged a bond that lasted a decade. In 2021, Mr. Vance’s support for an Arkansas ban on gender-affirming care for minors led to their falling out.

Sofia Nelson, now a public defender in Detroit, discussed Mr. Vance’s pivot, politically and personally, with The Times.  

Background reading: 

• JD Vance, an unlikely friendship, and how it ended.
• Nelson shared with The Times about 90 emails and text messages with Mr. Vance. Here are some of the most revealing moments in their correspondence.
• How Yale propelled Mr. Vance’s career. 

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