The Kern County Board of Education in California has voted to ban transgender athletes from competing in girls’ sports, directly defying state policy and aligning with President Donald Trump’s February executive order that prohibits males from girls’ and women’s sports nationwide.
California, however, has refused to follow Trump’s order, maintaining its 2014 trans-inclusion policy for school sports. This has led to a lawsuit between the state and Trump’s Department of Justice, as well as multiple local controversies — most notably during the 2025 high school track season, when transgender athlete AB Hernandez competed for two girls’ state titles.
In May, three prominent Christian high schools — JSerra Catholic, Orange Lutheran, and Crean Lutheran — sent a joint letter to the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) condemning the policy, arguing it forces religious schools to act against their beliefs.
Kern County is now the first public school board in California to formally break with the state on the matter. Similar moves have happened elsewhere: in April, two public school boards in Maine passed resolutions banning trans athletes from girls’ sports. Both California and Maine now face federal lawsuits seeking injunctions to stop trans athlete participation and restrict use of girls’ locker rooms to biological females.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, while stating in the past that he believes males competing in girls’ sports is “deeply unfair,” has resisted calls to support a ban, citing concerns about the rhetoric used toward the transgender community.
Polling from the Public Policy Institute of California shows most residents — including over 70% of public school parents — support requiring athletes to compete based on their biological sex.