“We all want a fair and safe place for our children to play and compete,” the Democrat wrote in a veto on Friday banning trans athletes. “However, this bill… came from politicians who were trying to gain political points.” Republicans have vowed to launch a bypass effort in the coming weeks. “This is exactly what the law on justice in women’s sports is about,” said GOP Senate President Ty Masterson. “It simply sets out guidelines to ensure that the fair play for women we have recognized for decades continues.” The bill would biologically bar male students from girls ‘and women’s sports teams from elementary school to college – but would not prevent organic women from competing in boys’ teams, lawmakers said. That’s because, according to Kansas lawmakers, trans women have an inherent advantage over female-born athletes – citing the controversial case of NCAA champion Lia Thomas. Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly faces re-election this fall. Paul Rutherford-USA TODAY Sports At least a dozen other states have limited participation of trans girls in women’s sports. Kelly rejected a similar bill in 2021, citing the prospect of possible boycotts of Kansas businesses. Kelly’s second veto banned the introduction of a “parental rights waiver” in education that would require school districts to address parental challenges to books in school libraries or classroom material. Proponents of her case have been working to make the actual transcript of this statement available online. Proponents of her case have been working to make the actual transcript of this statement available online. Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly has accused Republicans of “trying to win political points.” Republicans immediately sought to veto the campaign’s campaign for Kelly, who came to power in 2018 with just 48 percent of the vote in the state with purple tendencies. “Democrats in Kansas are determined to learn the hard way what the Democrats in Virginia have learned: Voters do not elect candidates who tell their parents they do not matter,” wrote Joanna Rodriguez, a spokeswoman for the Republican House of Representatives. Republican Glenn Youngkin won a landslide victory in Virginia’s election last year on a platform that promotes parental rights in education.