Kansas Anti-Trans Sports Bill Officially Dead
Associated Press reports. The Kansas Senate had voted Tuesday to override Kelly’s veto with a margin of 28-10, meeting the two-thirds threshold, but the supermajority was required in both chambers.
This is the second consecutive year that Kelly, a Democrat in a Republican-dominated state, has vetoed such legislation.The bill would have barred trans girls and women from participating alongside cisgender females in public schools, including state colleges and universities, and any private schools that compete against them.
It would not have affected trans male athletes.“We all want a fair and safe place for our kids to play and compete,” Kelly wrote in a veto message earlier this month. “However, this bill didn’t come from the experts at our schools, our athletes, or the Kansas State High School Activities Association.
It came from politicians trying to score political points.”Opponents of the bill, such as Rep. Stephanie Byers, the only trans person in the Kansas legislature, have pointed out that trans athletes make up a tiny minority of school sports participants in the state and that bills like this serve only to further oppress an already marginalized community.
