As the world watches the Oscars Sunday evening, the White House will be hosting its annual Governors’ Dinner.
The black-tie event marks the first major social gathering of the Donald Trump administration, CNN reports. The National Governors Association’s annual meeting and dinner in Washington, which honors the governors of the 50 states, is considered one of the year’s “major events,” Jeremy Bernard, President Barack Obama’s former social secretary, told the network.
Earlier this week, Press Secretary Sean Spicer told reporters that First Lady Melania Trump has helped to lead the gala’s planning. However, her longtime friend Stephanie Winston Wolkoff — who is acting as senior adviser to the First Lady — has been planning the event as well, among others. Wolkoff previously worked as Vogue magazine’s event direct and organized events like the Met Gala, reports CNN.
Trump’s War on Media Fuels Criticism of White House Dinner
“Mrs. Trump looks forward to putting on a phenomenal event, and the First Lady has put a lot of time into this event that’s going to occur in welcoming our nation’s governors to the Capitol,” Spicer told reporters.
Planning for the event has been in the works since President Trump’s inauguration if not before, CNN reports.
“The Governors’ Dinner is an opportunity for the new first lady to usher in a new era of elegant White House entertaining,” Laura Dowling, who served as chief White House floral designer under Obama for six years, told CNN. “I think it’s an exciting time.”
This article originally appeared on TIME.com
