WASHINGTON—House Speaker Mike Johnson announced on Nov. 20 that he will prohibit people from using bathrooms in the Capitol that do not correspond with their biological sex.
In this year’s general election, Delaware state Sen. Sarah McBride—a male who identifies as a woman—was elected to represent the state’s at-large district in the U.S. House, becoming the first person who identifies as transgender to be elected to Congress.
McBride’s election prompted Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) to announce that she would file a resolution to block McBride from using women’s restroom facilities at the House, sparking opposition from House Democrats.
Johnson, after declining to express an opinion on the subject on Nov. 19, announced on Nov. 20 that he will limit access to restrooms based on biological sex. The measure effectively blocks McBride from using the women’s restroom.
“All single-sex facilities in the Capitol and House Office Buildings—such as restrooms, changing rooms, and locker rooms—are reserved for individuals of that biological sex,” Johnson wrote in a statement. “It is important to note that each Member office has its own private restroom, and unisex restrooms are available throughout the Capitol. ... Women deserve women’s only spaces.”
His ruling does not apply to U.S. Senate facilities, over which the Senate Majority Leader exercises equivalent control. Control of the Senate will pass to Republicans on Jan. 3, 2025.
House rules grant the speaker large administrative control over facilities, and the Republican Conference is unlikely to act against the decision when it adopts the House’s Rules Package for the 119th Congress on Jan. 3, 2025.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) denounced efforts to block McBride from women-only facilities.
“The notion that this incoming small House Republican Conference majority is beginning to transition to the new Congress by bullying a member of Congress, this is what we’re doing? This is the lesson that you’ve drawn from the election in November?” he said during a Nov. 19 press conference. “We will not hesitate to call that out.”
Mace said on Nov. 20 that she would introduce a bill to ban people who identify as transgender from using bathrooms on federal property that do not align with their biological sex. Her comments reflect those of other Republicans, who have also opposed males’ competing in women’s sports.
