Voters in Arizona, Colorado, Nebraska and Washington approved limits on transgender athletes in Tuesday's midterm elections, delivering wins on an issue the Trump administration has made a priority even as Democrats swept races in Republican strongholds.
Three of the measures, in Colorado, Nebraska and Washington, reached the ballot through citizen initiatives. Arizona's was sent to voters by the state legislature.
The outcomes ran against the broader Democratic tide of the night, with GOP-backed ballot measures finding support in several regions of the country.
What each measure does
Arizona's measure drew about 59% support as of late Wednesday. It extends the state's current restrictions to private athletic associations and reaches beyond sports, barring schools and athletic groups from letting people enter restrooms, changing areas and similar facilities set aside for a sex other than the one listed on their original birth certificate.
Colorado's Proposition 134 led with 52% of the vote. It would require every school team, from elementary grades through college, to be classified as male, female or coed, with students playing according to biological sex.
Nebraska voters wrote their restriction into the state constitution, which now bars male students from girls' and women's teams.
Washington's Initiative 638 keeps transgender girls out of girls' sports from kindergarten through 12th grade. Students who want to play on female teams will have to provide health care records verifying their eligibility.
The practical reach in Washington may be small: the state's interscholastic athletics association has said it knows of only about 10 transgender athletes competing statewide in a given year.
The four states add to an already broad patchwork. Before the election, 29 states reserved girls' and women's school teams for female students through statutes, regulations or athletic association rules.
