A Republican-led effort to restrict transgender athletes from competing in girls’ and women’s sports failed in the U.S. Senate on Saturday, after Democrats voted to block the amendment tied to a broader election bill.
The proposal—introduced as part of the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act—fell short in a 49-41 vote, with support and opposition largely split along party lines. The measure required 60 votes to advance.
Spearheaded by Tommy Tuberville and Marsha Blackburn, the amendment—titled the Protection for Women and Girls in Sports Act—sought to bar federally funded schools from allowing transgender girls and women to compete based on gender identity.
The vote marks another setback for Republican lawmakers pushing the issue, which has become a key talking point ahead of upcoming midterm elections.
“This is the fourth time that I’ve had this bill on the floor,” Tuberville remarked. “I’ll continue to try until I’m gone.
“Every time that we’ve voted on this, I have not gone one single Democrat to vote for it,” he said.
The SAVE America Act itself focuses on tightening voting requirements, including mandates for proof of citizenship during voter registration and photo identification at polling stations. However, Republicans have sought to expand the bill by adding provisions aligned with broader cultural and policy debates.
Donald Trump has publicly backed the inclusion of measures such as banning transgender participation in women’s sports, limiting no-excuse mail-in voting, and restricting gender-affirming procedures for minors.
Supporters of the amendment argue that biological differences create an uneven playing field in competitive sports. Tuberville raised concerns about fairness during floor remarks.
“How about the trophies and awards that are stolen from young girls and ladies that work all their life to win a game or a sport … and they lose to somebody that’s much more physical, bigger, stronger and faster?” Tuberville asked on the floor.
Blackburn echoed those sentiments, linking the issue to Title IX protections, the landmark 1972 law designed to prevent sex-based discrimination in education.
“Thank goodness President Donald Trump has tried to chase away some of the adverse actions against Title IX that were carried out during the Biden Administration … when women would be forced to share a locker room with guys because the guy decided he was going to claim to be a female so he could compete,” Blackburn said.
“The guy couldn’t win in the guys’ category so they claimed to be women so they could take away that trophy, so they can take away that scholarship from young women,” she said. “I think that’s disgusting.”
Republicans have frequently pointed to high-profile cases such as Lia Thomas to support their position, though such instances remain relatively rare.
Meanwhile, Democrats did not take to the Senate floor to speak directly against the amendment ahead of the vote, leaving the debate largely framed by Republican arguments during proceedings.
Shelley Moore Capito, a former Division I athlete, emphasized the personal significance of the issue during a Capitol press conference.
“I played a college sport and so did my daughter. This issue hits home for me,” she said.
“Let me be clear: This is about fairness, and it’s about preserving a level playing field for women and girls who have worked hard, trained hard, and deserve the chance to compete on equal terms,” she said. “Biological women competing alongside biological men is anything but fair.”
