(Thérèse Boudreaux, The Center Square) Women’s sports advocates suffered a loss Monday night when all Democratic senators present voted against a bill that would ban males who identify as transgender from competing against women in sports.
Republicans were unable to garner the seven Democratic votes needed to advance the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025 to a vote on final passage. Democrats argued the bill is “an attack” on transgender people, while Republicans labeled opponents as anti-women and out of touch with most Americans.
“Well, at least now the American people know the truth,” U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., who sponsored the legislation, said on X following the vote. “Democrats STILL support men competing in women’s sports. This is far from over. I’ll NEVER stop fighting to protect women and girls.”
The bill stipulates that under Title IX, which prohibits sex-based discrimination in federally funded programs, “sex shall be recognized based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.”
Furthermore, it would ban any recipient of federal funding “who operates, sponsors, or facilitates athletic programs or activities to permit a person whose sex is male to participate in an athletic program or activity that is designated for women or girls.”
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Penn., who has occasionally sided with Republicans in controversial votes, explained he voted no because he does not believe the issue is a legitimate problem.
“The small handful of trans athletes in PA in a political maelstrom deserve an ally and I am one,” Fetterman said on X following the vote. “Empty show votes or cruelty on social media aren’t part of a thoughtful, dignified solution.”
According to a recent report from the United Nations, transgender athletes have captured about 900 medals that would have otherwise gone to about 600 female athletes.
Additionally, nearly 80% of Americans — including the majority of Democratic voters — do not want transgender-identifying men in women’s sports, according to a recent poll by the New York Times.
The legislation would have effectively codified President Donald Trump’s Feb. 5 executive order, which reversed Biden-era policies expanding Title IX to include gender identity. Trump’s order also banned transgender athletes from participating in women’s sports at schools and colleges.
The EO immediately garnered backlash from Democrat-led states, with Maine now facing the threat of a federal lawsuit for noncompliance.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association partially complied with Trump’s order by banning male athletes from participating in NCAA-sanctioned competitions yet still allowing them to practice with women’s teams and receive certain benefits.
It is unclear how the president’s order or future Title IX laws will be enforced if Trump follows through with his intent to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education.
