Texans only Democrats in Congress to vote for bill restricting trans athletes

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WASHINGTON — Two moderate South Texas Democrats voted Tuesday to ban federal funds for schools that allow trans athletes in girls sports, breaking from the rest of their party.

U.S. Reps. Vicente Gonzalez, D-McAllen, and Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, were the only Democrats in Congress to vote for the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act. The bill would ban federal funds for any K-12 school that allows a “person whose sex is male to participate in an athletic program or activity that is designated for women or girls,” defining sex as “based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.”

The bill also commissions a study to “document the adverse psychological, developmental, participatory, and sociological results to girls of allowing males to compete, be members of a sports team, or participants in athletic programs, that are designed for girls.”

The bill is broadly written, impacting schools that “facilitates” girls sports programs that allow trans athletes, even if the programs are not formally organized by the school. It now goes to the Senate, where it faces an uphill battle to get the 60-vote supermajority required to advance out of the chamber.

Both Gonzalez and Cuellar are in politically vulnerable seats. Their majority-Latino districts both voted for President-elect Donald Trump in last year’s elections.

Gonzalez was subjected to Republicans’ biggest offensive effort in Texas last election cycle, with Republican candidate Mayra Flores spending over $6 million in her bid to unseat him. Republicans pilloried Gonzalez with ads accusing him of supporting tax-funded sex change surgeries for minors, pointing to his vote in 2021 for the Equality Act, which would protect trans people from discrimination. Gonzalez denies that he supports tax dollars going toward gender transition surgery and said the ads had an impact on how constituents voted in his district.

Gonzalez and Cuellar are among the most conservative members in the House Democratic Caucus. Cuellar is the only remaining anti-abortion Democrat in Congress, and Gonzalez has previously stated he does not support “boys competing in girls sports.”

After his victory this year, Gonzalez criticized his fellow Democrats for urging him to support pro-LGBT legislation in the past, saying some of the priorities do not reflect the values of his majority-Catholic district and hurt him in the election.

“I believe that there should be rules to keep our sports fair and that boys should not play in girls sports," Gonzalez said in a Tuesday statement after the vote. "Members of Congress must have the freedom to vote in a manner representative of their district. As Democrats, we should not be afraid to vote our district’s values because we're afraid of Washington."

He made similar remarks in an interview after the election, where he said “we need to protect every community in America, but there are issues that I don't agree with, like boys and girls bathrooms, or boys competing in girls sports, and I think we should be outspoken about it. I don't think Democrats should have to hide from a message like that.”

When asked about Gonzalez’s colleague, Sarah McBride, the first trans member of Congress, Gonzalez would not say at the time if he would support allowing McBride to use the women’s restroom.

Gonzalez's post-election comments prompted pushback from LGBT activists in South Texas, who spurned Gonzalez’s claim that pro-trans legislation was against the region’s values.

“As we prepare for the second term of President-elect Donald Trump, it is imperative that the LGBTQ community of South Texas knows that your office will vote affirmatively to protect their rights and livelihoods in D.C,” they wrote in a Dec. 11 letter to Gonzalez. “Our expectation of our elected officials is that they will serve and protect everyone in their district, including trans constituents.”

More than 300 South Texas LGBT residents, small businesses, activists and organizations signed onto the letter.

Five of the activists had a video follow-up call with Gonzalez in December where Gonzalez promised he would never vote for legislation that would actively harm trans Texans, said Dani Marrero Hi, a community organizer and one of the participants on the call. Other participants on the call included constituents who had block walked for Gonzalez and a mother whose son is a trans athlete, who shared their experiences with Gonzalez living in the socially conservative district. Marrero Hi said Gonzalez's vote on Tuesday was a "slap in the face."

"He told us to our face that he would never actually vote for something that would harm trans people," Marrero Hi said. "Him voting now in favor of this bill and adding Democratic support to it shows that what he told his trans constituents does not align with what he's actually doing on the House floor."

Marrero Hi added that it was "really unfortunate" that Gonzalez used trans issues as a talking point in analyzing the 2024 elections "when to us he's shown he doesn't have any good understanding of the lives of trans Texans."

In response to Marrero Hi's comments, Gonzalez's office said: "The Congressman is glad to meet with all constituents to learn from their viewpoints and hear their experiences. Congressman Gonzalez will continue to fight for South Texans in Congress by working to lower costs and creating economic opportunities for all.”

Republicans are also looking to target Cuellar in the 2026 election cycle. The congressman is under federal indictment on charges of corruption, money laundering and working for a foreign government that has taken a toll on his political capital. Cuellar denies the allegations and faces trial later this year.

Tuesday’s bill was introduced by Florida’s Rep. Greg Steube with several Texas Republicans cosponsoring. Reps. Dan Crenshaw of Houston, Lance Gooden of Terrell, Randy Weber of Friendswood, Keith Self of McKinney, Brian Babin of Woodville, Troy Nehls of Richmond, Jake Ellzey of Midlothian, Jodey Arrington of Lubbock and Monica De La Cruz of Edinburg all cosponsored the bill.

All other Democrats in the chamber voted against the bill except for U.S. Rep. Don Davis of North Carolina, who voted “present.”