Washington voters approved Initiative 638 last week by a margin of roughly 56 to 44 percent, barring biological males from competing on K-12 girls’ sports teams. More than 1.25 million people voted yes. Within days, officials in Seattle began working to stop the law from taking effect.
The Seattle School Board voted unanimously on Nov. 9 to hire lawyers and challenge the measure. Board Director Joe Mizrahi said, “These laws reflect values our communities have fought for and overwhelmingly support,” adding that “we don’t see a way to implement Initiative 638 without violating those vital protections.”
A day later, Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson backed the board’s move. “I support the Seattle Public Schools Board’s decision to challenge Initiative 638, because every young person in Seattle deserves to thrive as their authentic self,” Wilson wrote on X.
The post drew heavy pushback online. School choice advocate Corey DeAngelis wrote, “The people already voted to keep boys out of girls’ sports. Why do you hate Democracy, tyrant?” Independent journalist Andy Ngo said, “Democrats in Washington state have no problem undermining democracy and civil rights when it suits their ends.”
The school board isn’t the only party going to court. The ACLU of Washington, Legal Voice, and Pacifica Law Group have filed a separate lawsuit asking a King County judge to block I-638 before it takes effect Dec. 3. Plaintiffs in that suit include the Washington Education Association teachers union, the advocacy group TransFamilies, and several unnamed parents.
Let’s Go Washington, the group that put the initiative on the ballot, says the legal challenges amount to an attempt to overturn an election result through the courts. “They want boys in girls’ sports at all costs, and they are willing to undermine democracy to get them there,” spokesman Darren Littell said.
The group also notes that the U.S. Supreme Court upheld sex-based sports categories in a June ruling, which the challengers will have to contend with as the case moves forward.
I-638 passed even as two other conservative-backed initiatives on the same ballot failed and Republicans lost seats in the state Legislature, according to the Seattle Times. The measure’s win was one of the more notable results of the night in a state where Democrats hold most levers of power.
