The 2026 midterms were a referendum on President Donald Trump’s performance in office and that of the Republican-controlled Congress. The verdict was overwhelmingly and deservedly negative. The GOP now faces a yearslong rebuilding task that will require the party to reconsider extreme ideological positions that alienated voters.
Yet in the background of that metaphorical referendum were a series of literal referendums at the state level, which let the public speak just as clearly. Many of these asked voters to pass judgment on a cherished ideological tenet of the Democratic Party’s progressive base: transgender rights. And almost without exception, voters turned their thumbs down.
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