Growing majority’s message to trans people: Stay out of women’s sports

More and more adults want transgender females to stay out of women’s sports, according to the latest Gallup polling.

Gallup reported Monday that 69% of respondents to a recent survey say trans athletes should be allowed to compete on sports teams only corresponding to their sex at birth. That’s up from 62% in 2021, the last time the polling company posed the question.

The share of adults who endorse transgender athletes being able to play on teams that match their current gender identity dropped from 34% in 2021 to 26% this year, the company found. The remaining 5% of respondents had no opinion.

“The issue has sparked debate at all levels of competitive sports, particularly around transgender women’s ability to play on women’s teams,” Gallup said. “Sports governing bodies and schools have adopted a range of policies on the issue, some more inclusive of transgender participation than others.”

At least 20 conservative-leaning states have passed laws restricting “transgender athletes who were born male” from participating in women’s sports, and the Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives recently passed a national ban, the company noted.

“The federal ban is unlikely to pass the Senate, and President Joe Biden has promised to veto it,” Gallup said, noting Democratic Party support for trans women competing in women’s sports. “The White House recently released a proposed set of guidelines that would govern decisions surrounding transgender individuals’ participation in gender-segregated sports.

The increase in “public opposition to transgender athletes competing on the basis of their current gender identity” comes as 39% of survey respondents say they know a transgender person, up from 31% in 2021, Gallup noted. Adults who know and do not know a trans person have become less supportive, the polling found.

Opposition grew among all political affiliations, with 93% of Republicans and 67% of independents wanting trans people out of women’s sports this year — up from 86% and 63%, respectively, in 2021.

Among Democrats, support for trans people playing on the team of their choice fell from a majority of 55% in 2021 to 47% this year, with 48% opposed and 6% unsure. Political liberals were the only group of survey respondents in which the majority (57%) expressed support in the latest poll.

Gallup conducted a randomized national telephone survey of 1,011 adults from May 1-24. The margin of error was plus or minus 4 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.