Blakeman Vows Statewide Ban on Transgender Students in Girls' School Facilities if Elected Governor

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman has pledged to implement a statewide ban on transgender students using girls' school bathrooms and locker rooms if elected New York's governor in November. Blakeman, a Republican gubernatorial candidate, announced his "Protect Our Daughters" plan, which would also prohibit biological males who transition to female from sharing overnight accommodations with girls on school trips. This initiative is framed as a response to the New York State Department of Education, supported by Gov. Kathy Hochul, blocking similar restrictions previously approved by local school boards on Long Island.

"Kathy Hochul has shown time and again that she would rather satisfy a political agenda than protect our daughters’ safety, privacy, and dignity," Blakeman stated. "That ends on Day 1 when I am Governor, and I enact the ‘Protect Our Daughters’ Initiative to keep biological men out of girls’ sports and bathrooms."

Blakeman, who previously issued an executive order in 2024 barring transgender athletes from participating in girls' and women's sports on Nassau County-run properties, asserted that his new plan would establish statewide standards for bathrooms, locker rooms, and overnight accommodations exclusively for biological females from kindergarten through 12th grade.

Sources indicate that such a measure would face significant challenges in the state Legislature, which is controlled by the Democratic party and oversees the Department of Education. Last year, the state Education Department overturned rules enacted by school boards in Locust Valley and Massapequa that sought to prohibit transgender students from using restrooms and locker rooms aligning with their gender identity.

Blakeman's campaign stated that his initiative would shield local school boards from state intervention and prevent punitive measures against districts that wish to exclude transgender students from female sports facilities. "Protecting girls’ sports was the first step. Ensuring their privacy in school bathrooms, locker rooms, and on overnight field trips is the next," Blakeman said. "The Protect Our Daughters initiative will take these common-sense safeguards statewide and make them permanent."

A spokesperson for Governor Hochul did not respond to requests for comment. However, the state Democratic Party spokesperson, Addison Dick, criticized Blakeman's proposal, calling it an "old Trump playbook" tactic to gain attention for his campaign.

A Siena College poll released on September 26 showed Blakeman trailing Hochul by 9 percentage points in the gubernatorial race. Recent polling suggests a shift in public opinion, with an analysis from Pew Research Center indicating that a significant majority of Americans, across party lines, are uncomfortable with transgender women competing against female athletes in sports that do not align with their birth sex.