As we head into the 2026 elections, Democrats in key battleground states are tone-deaf and committing political malpractice as they double down on policies that defy common sense and betray families.
Instead of listening to the American people, they are pushing a losing message to allow biological males to compete in women’s sports. While most families are worried about putting food on the table, paying for gas and groceries, and keeping their kids safe, Democrats are fixated on defending policies that actively harm our girls.
Some try to frame this debate as hate, but the real issue is fair play. Women’s athletics were built to allow competition for women and girls on a level playing field based on biological sex. The progress for women’s sports earned over decades of sacrifice and hard work is now being erased by a woke ideology that puts politics over facts.
Recent polling makes one thing clear: the American people aren’t buying this. A Gallup poll found nearly 70% of Americans, including a majority of Democrats, believe athletes should compete based on their sex at birth. An NBC News survey showed 75% of adults say biological men should not play in women’s sports, with two out of three Gen Z voters agreeing. And a New York Times/Ipsos poll put that number even higher at 79%.
COMMON SENSE SAYS WOMEN'S SPORTS ARE FOR WOMEN ONLY
Taken together, the message is undeniable: across party lines, the American people overwhelmingly and unequivocally believe men do not belong in women’s sports.
Yet Democrats like Sen. Jon Ossoff in Georgia, former Sen. Sherrod Brown in Ohio, former Gov. Roy Cooper in North Carolina and Gov. Janet Mills in Maine are operating against the will of the American people in a different reality. They have betrayed their constituents by opposing commonsense measures to protect women’s sports, putting themselves directly against the national majority.
In Georgia, Ossoff joined Senate Democrats to block the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, even as his own state passed the "Riley Gaines Act" to ban the same practice. He sided with Washington Democrats over Georgia families.
Brown in Ohio is even worse. In Washington, he voted to let biological males compete in girls’ sports. Ohio families rejected his extremism and passed the SAFE Act to protect girls in K–12 athletics. Now after being tossed out by voters, Brown has the gall to run again for the Senate.
HOW PSYCHIATRY AND ACTIVISM CREATED THE DANGEROUS CONCEPT OF 'TRANSGENDER CHILDREN'
Brown’s record is one of betrayal as he turned his back on Ohio families and pushed a platform that punishes women and girls. Brown must lose if we are to have any chance of protecting women’s sports and safeguarding our daughters’ futures.
And North Carolina is no different. As governor, Cooper used his power to veto the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act, which ensured athletes compete based on their biological sex. Lawmakers overrode his veto, proving just how out of touch Cooper was with his own state.
As Cooper tried to block fairness in girls’ sports, Gov. Mills in Maine went even further by refusing to comply with President Donald Trump’s executive order banning biological males from women’s sports in federally funded programs. Her defiance put millions in education funding at risk, all to push a radical agenda at the expense of girls’ safety and opportunity.
Adding up Ossoff, Brown, Cooper and Mills, the American people can see that the Democratic Party stands with a fringe ideology that betrays parents, fairness and our women and girls. While Democrats cling to this failing narrative, the rest of the country is moving in the opposite direction, in an all-out protection mode for women’s sports.
LIA THOMAS WAS ALSO A VICTIM OF UPENN’S TRANS LIE
President Trump led the national movement for commonsense by signing an executive order in February 2025 banning biological males from competing in women’s sports in federally funded programs. It was a decisive step that serves as a win for fairness and science, and is a lifeline for female athletes whose dreams and opportunities have been jeopardized.
This was also a wake-up call on fairness and a correction of injustice. Major athletic organizations, including the NCAA, are now following President Trump’s lead and making significant changes to align with the new federal standard. The updated policy explicitly states that a student-athlete assigned male at birth may not compete on a women’s team, replacing the patchwork system they previously had in place.
States such as Indiana, Montana and Nebraska are also taking action to protect women’s sports. Americans want a commonsense approach that safeguards our values of fairness, opportunity, and protection for women.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE FOX NEWS OPINION
This issue is deeply personal for parents like me across the country. We don’t want our daughters – who dedicate years to practices, training and sacrifice – to lose to biological males with obvious physical advantages. And we certainly don’t want them in locker rooms where safety and privacy should be paramount.
Legally, this is also about Title IX, the landmark law created to guarantee equal opportunities for women in education and athletics. By ignoring the past discrimination women fought to overcome and the biological realities of sex, Democrats are dismantling the very law they claim to uphold and opening the door for boys to take over girls’ sports.
Today the fight is about fairness and safety. Parents demand their daughters be protected. Athletes deserve a level playing field. Voters want leaders grounded in common sense. Democrats in swing states who refuse to protect girls’ and women’s sports are alienating suburban women, parents and Gen Z – voters who overwhelmingly reject boys competing in girls’ sports. They are abandoning the very voters they need and it will cost them elections.
The 2026 midterms will be a moment of truth. Democrats must decide whether to cling to fringe ideology or stand with the overwhelming majority of Americans who believe in fairness for women and girls.
The future of women’s sports and our daughters’ opportunities are on the line. And if Democrats still refuse to listen, voters will remind them decisively at the ballot box. This isn’t only about fairness in sports – it’s about a fundamental betrayal of American women, and it will not be forgotten.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE BY MEHEK COOKE
The post Defining fair play: Why swing-state Democrats are out of step on protecting women’s sports appeared first on FOX News