Republicans, and two Democrats, have voted to ban trans women and girls from school sports.
The Bill would rewrite current legislation to define sex as “reproductive biology and genetics at birth” – effectively banning trans athletes from competing on teams matching their gender identity at any school receiving federal funding.
The vote in the House of Representatives comes just months after the Delaware Democrat Sarah McBride made history as the first trans person elected to Congress. Republicans have already moved to restrict toilet access in the Capitol building – a move widely seen as targeting McBride.
With Republicans controlling 53 Senate seats, the Bill will need significant Democratic support to clear the 60-vote threshold.
Californian Sara Jacobs, who has a trans brother, said she had been having numerous conversations about the bill.
“I think everyone understands that this is not actually about trans people,” she told The Independent. “It’s about checking women’s genitals before they allow them to play sports.”
In recent years, Republicans have repeatedly attacked Democrats for supporting trans people. In the 2024 election, President-elect Donald Trump ran an ad attacking Kamala Harris as “for they/them,” while “President Trump is for you.”
Trump has said he will roll back Biden administration rules that allowed trans students from using toilets or playing sports that align with their gender identities.