Maine Supreme Court affirms Bellows' decision to invalidate trans sports ballot question
The Maine Supreme Judicial Court Friday affirmed the Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows’ decision to remove a question about transgender sports from the ballot this November because its campaign committee did not collect enough valid signatures.
The group, called “Protect Girls Sports,” initially submitted enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot, proposing an initiative that would restrict what school sports teams, bathrooms and facilities trans students can access. Bellows later determined that the campaign had failed to qualify, after thousands of signatures were invalidated.
That ruling was upheld by the Superior Court in June and the campaign appealed that decision to the Supreme Judicial Court, which upheld the lower court and secretary’s decision in a ruling on Friday.
“The petition fell below the constitutional threshold for an initiative petition to be submitted to the voters of Maine,” the court said in its unanimous decision.
https://mainemorningstar.com/2026/07/10/maine-supreme-court-affirms-bellows-decision-to-invalidate-trans-sports-ballot-question/