Maine’s transgender sports initiative blocked
State officials announced Tuesday that the Protect Girls Sports initiative will not appear on the November ballot. The measure, championed by a parent‑led group, sought to require public schools to limit bathroom and sports access to the gender listed on a child’s birth certificate. Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, who is also running for governor as a Democrat, said her staff’s review found more than 12,000 signatures on the petition to be invalid. That shortfall leaves the drive a few hundred signatures shy of the 67,682 needed for ballot qualification.
“We take the integrity of the petitions just as seriously as we take the security of voting. It’s really important that anyone seeking to place an initiative on the ballot follow the law,” Bellows said. Her statement underscores the office’s commitment to both electoral integrity and adherence to procedural rules.
The initiative emerged last year from Protect Girls Sports in Maine, a group that argues schools should base participation on birth‑certificate gender. The effort was poised to become a flashpoint in the state’s ongoing debate over transgender rights, a debate that previously pitted Democratic Gov. Janet Mills against President Donald Trump on the issue. Bellows’ ruling marks a setback for the nationwide movement that aims to restrict transgender students’ participation in school athletics.
Leyland Streiff, the group’s principal officer, issued a statement rejecting Bellows’ decision. “We disagree with the secretary of state’s decision declaring the Protect Girls Sports initiative ineligible for the November ballot,” Streiff said. He added that the organization will pursue full judicial review and will explore options to place the measure on a future ballot, emphasizing that the courts—not the secretary—should have the final say.
Opponents of the ballot measure praised the decision. David Farmer, campaign manager for the Campaign for Free and Fair Schools, which opposed the question, said the petitioners “failed to follow the rules.” The group’s endorsement of the ruling highlights bipartisan concern over the petition’s procedural deficiencies.
The removal of the initiative adds to a broader national landscape in which at least 30 states have enacted laws or policies that seek to keep transgender girls and women out of girls’ and women’s sports. While none of those statutes originated from ballot measures, two other Democratic‑controlled states—Colorado and Washington—have sports‑related measures on the November ballot. The ongoing legal battles, including a court‑blocked enforcement of Montana’s law, illustrate the contentious and evolving nature of this issue across the country.
Maine’s decision, therefore, not only stops a specific proposal but also signals the challenges facing similar initiatives elsewhere, where legal hurdles and procedural scrutiny continue to shape the fight over transgender athletes’ rights.