Gov. Tony Evers vetoed Republican bills Tuesday that would have placed new prohibitions in state statute related to transgender children, including banning them from sports teams that align with their gender identity, barring them from choosing the name and pronouns used for them in school and from accessing gender affirming medical care. 

Evers said in a statement that the legislation “stirs harmful rhetoric, negatively affects Wisconsinites’ and kids’ mental health, emboldens anti-LGBTQ harassment, bullying, and violence, and threatens the safety and dignity of LGBTQ Wisconsinites, especially our trans and nonbinary kids.”

A 2024 survey by The Trevor Project found that 91% of LGBTQ+ young people in Wisconsin said that recent politics negatively impacted their well-being. 

AB 100  and AB 102 would have barred transgender girls in K-12 schools and transgender women at Wisconsin’s higher education institutions from participating on sports teams and using locker rooms that align with their gender identity.

AB 103 would have required that school districts adopt policies requiring consent from  students’ parents or guardians before using  names or pronouns that differ from their birth certificates.

AB 104 would have prohibited health care professionals from providing medical gender affirming care for those under 18.

SB 405 would have created a civil cause of action against health care providers who perform gender transition procedures on someone under the age of 18 if they claim to be injured.

Republican lawmakers had pushed the bills to Evers’ desk, arguing they would protect Wisconsin students and ensure parents are informed of what’s happening in schools. They did so despite hourslong public hearings where many parents, students and advocates spoke in opposition to the bills and previous promises by Evers to block “any bill making Wisconsin less safe, less inclusive, and less welcoming for LGBTQ people and kids.” 

Evers vetoed the bills on International Transgender Day of Visibility while surrounded by advocates for LGBTQ kids and their families as well as other community members.

“Especially in the wake of continued attacks against LGBTQ communities, particularly targeting the trans community, our work to fight this hatred and bigotry is more important than ever,” Evers said in his statement. “I’m proud to stand with LGBTQ kids and Wisconsinites today and every day.”

According to the American Civil Liberties Union, there have been about 500 anti-LGBTQ bills introduced throughout the country so far in 2026. 

The federal government has continued to target transgender Americans in the start of President Donald Trump’s second year of his second term and as Wisconsin Republicans running for office are seeking to bring the issue to the forefront of their campaigns. Earlier this month, the administration launched an investigation into the New Richmond School District for its policies that allow students to use bathrooms that align with their gender identity. Moms for Liberty, U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany and Michael Alfonso, a Republican candidate for the open 8th Congressional District seat and son-in-law of Transportation Sec. Sean Duffy, have been criticizing the school district online for weeks.

In his veto messages, Evers said the bills did not comport with “our Wisconsin values.” 

“We teach our kids to treat each other with kindness, respect, empathy and compassion — and we expect adults to lead by example. LGBTQ Wisconsinites and Americans should be able to be safe, be treated with dignity and respect, and be welcomed and accepted for who they are without fear of violence, harassment or persecution,” Evers said. “While the federal government and other states across this country may give way to anti-LGBTQ hate, here in Wisconsin, we will continue to decline to do the same.” 

Abigail Swetz, executive director of Fair Wisconsin, thanked Evers in a statement for rejecting the bills and supporting transgender kids. 

“These bills were always about more than health care or the makeup of a sports team or the use of pronouns in a classroom  — they were about excluding trans people from public life, and we cannot allow that, especially when our trans community is being attacked by so many levels of government,” Swetz said.