Senate Democrats defeated a bill on Monday that would have barred male-born athletes competing in female high school sports. They did so despite a growing public backlash against transgender athletes competing based solely on their gender identity and not biological sex.

The Senate Republicans failed to get the 60 votes required to invoke cloture in the Senate Bill 9 – the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act – sponsored by Alabama Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville. The final vote on party lines was 51-45.

The bill would have prohibited federal funding for scholastic institutes that allowed those whose “sex was male” to take part in programs and activities designed for girls and women. “Sex” is based on “a person’s reproduction biology and genetics as of birth.”

The Republicans may have lost the election but they could be winning in the public relations war on an issue that pollsters call an 80/20 matter.

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In a New York Times/IPSOS survey released in January, 79% of U.S. adult women were against transgender athletes participating in female sports. This included 67% of Democrats and 60% of Independents.

Conservative groups have criticized Senate Democrats who refuse to compromise on this issue.

After the vote, American Principles Project president Terry Schilling stated: “It’s disappointing to see Democrats deny biological realities and ignore the will the American people to appease their radical, out-of touch base.” Women and girls should feel safe in the bathrooms, locker room, and on field. Democrats must get their heads off the sand, and listen to Americans who want women’s sport to be protected.

The American Civil Liberties Union hailed the bill’s defeat, which was widely expected. It called it “just one part of an effort to remove transgenders from public life.”

Mike Zamore is the national director of government and policy affairs for ACLU. He said: “We must focus more on ensuring that girls and women have equal and fair opportunities, and not on bullying and inflicting humiliating and invasive checks on children to serve adult political goals.”

In January, only two Democrats joined the House Republican majority to pass the companion measure. This was three weeks before Trump signed his executive order “Keeping men out of women’s sports”.

The order Mr. Trump signed on Feb. 5, bans schools from allowing female students to participate in sports based solely on their gender identity. However, Republicans argue that legislation is required to codify this measure.

Before the vote, the White House released a statement saying that it “strongly supported” the legislation. It said it would complement Mr. Trump’s Executive Order and federal court rulings.

The executive order of the president also nullified the rule added by Biden’s administration to Title IX that prohibited sexism in education.

The administration released a statement that said, “Men participating women’s sports is not only demeaning and dangerous for women and girls but also undermines the integrity and civil rights laws of our nation.”

California, Maine, and Minnesota are among the states which have already been investigated by the Trump Department of Education for having defied executive order.

In response to a complaint made by a female athlete who refused to play against a transgender competitor, the Office for Civil Rights of the Department announced Monday that it would be investigating Tumwater school district in Washington State.