A bill aimed at preventing transgender women and girls from competing in female-designated school sports failed to progress in the Senate on Monday night, as Democrats united against it. The test vote saw the bill fall short of the 60 votes needed to advance, with a 51-45 vote along party lines. The legislation proposed determining Title IX protections “solely based on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.” The vote came amid Republicans’ repeated focus on the issue, framing it as a matter of fairness in athletics for women and girls.
President Donald Trump had signed an executive order last month allowing federal agencies to enforce Title IX in accordance with the administration’s definition of “sex” as the gender assigned at birth. However, Republicans in Congress are now pushing to codify this interpretation into law by amending the 1972 Title IX law, which prohibits sex-based discrimination in educational programs or activities that receive federal funding. “We’ve seen men — biological men identifying as women — take spots and medals in sports meant for actual women,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., emphasizing the issue of fairness and equality.
