Nebraska, Arizona Voters Approve Protections for Girls' Sports

Voters in Nebraska and Arizona approved ballot measures on Tuesday that keep biological males off girls’ and women’s school sports teams, according to projections reported early Wednesday by The Hill and an Associated Press projection cited by KGUN 9 in Tucson, handing conservatives a clear policy win on a night that otherwise went badly for Republicans.

In Nebraska, Initiative Measure 442 was projected to pass with nearly 68 percent support, according to Decision Desk HQ figures cited by The Hill. Election results compiled by Exa show the race was called at 12:16 a.m. Eastern time Wednesday. The constitutional amendment requires public schools, including K-12 schools, colleges and universities, as well as private schools that compete against them, to designate teams as male, female or co-ed, The Hill reported.

PROP. 318: Arizona voters projected to approve measure setting sports teams and locker room access by sex on birth certificates, AP reports. pic.twitter.com/UnHQPPvyNW

— KGUN 9 (@kgun9) November 4, 2026

Nebraska already passed a law in 2025 requiring public schools to designate teams by sex at birth, according to The Hill. The difference, the outlet reported, is that the ballot measure writes those requirements into the state constitution, which makes them much harder for a future legislature to undo.

In Arizona, Proposition 318 was projected to pass with nearly 58 percent of the vote, according to Decision Desk HQ figures reported by The Hill. The measure requires both public and private schools, as well as athletic associations, to designate sports teams as male, female or co-ed based on biological sex, the outlet reported. It also bars schools from letting people use locker rooms and other private spaces that do not match their biological sex, and it defines sex by what is recorded on an individual’s original birth certificate, according to The Hill.

Fox News reported Wednesday morning that voters in four states weighed measures on the issue. Bloomberg Law reported that Arizona, Nebraska, Colorado and Washington all had initiatives aimed at keeping biological males out of female school sports competitions.

Washington state’s Initiative 638, which would require K-12 athletes to compete on teams aligned with their biological sex, held a lead of 13.6 points with 60 percent of ballots counted, according to OutKick, a Fox News property. OutKick reported that, if approved, it would be the first time voters anywhere approved a statewide law separating boys’ and girls’ K-12 sports, and the first such law in a blue state. In Colorado, a similar measure, Proposition 134, led by a narrower 4.4 points with about 75 percent of ballots counted, according to the same report. Neither of those two races had been called at last check.

The results stand out because Democrats won control of both the House and the Senate on Tuesday, according to the Associated Press. Even in that environment, the girls’ sports measures ran well ahead in two states where they had been decided, according to the reported vote counts.

Republicans have leaned heavily into the issue of fairness and privacy in girls’ sports, and the question has also divided some Democrats, The Hill reported. Bloomberg Law noted that polls show most Americans do not want males competing in female sports.

OutKick reported that 27 states, all of which Donald Trump carried in 2024, already enforce separation of boys’ and girls’ sports, but that those laws were passed by legislatures rather than directly by voters. Tuesday’s results put the question directly to voters, and in Nebraska and Arizona the answer was yes by double digits, according to the projections.

Vote counting was still underway in several states Wednesday morning, and final certified margins could shift as remaining ballots are tallied.

Sources

• The Hill: Nebraska voters approve measure
• The Hill: Arizona approves ballot measure
• Bloomberg Law
• OutKick / Fox News
• Nebraska Initiative 442 results
• Arizona Proposition 318 results
• KGUN 9 on X

Reporting by Daily Beltway.