Georgia Governor to sign Riley Gaines Act of 2025, safeguarding women’s sports from transgender ideology

Georgia Governor Brian Kemp (R-GA) is set to sign an act prohibiting males from participating in girls’ sports, following President Donald Trump’s executive action to safeguard women’s sports. The Georgia legislature passed a bill to exclude so-called “transgender girls” or males identifying as females from participating in girls’ sports. The legislation, known as the “Riley Gaines Act of 2025,” compels middle school, high school, and college student athletes to participate in sports that correspond with their biological sex.

The bill takes its name from former collegiate swimmer Riley Gaines, who highlighted the disparity in participation of transgender athletes in girls’ sports after competing against transgender swimmer Lia Thomas. In February, Trump signed an executive order prohibiting males from participating in women’s sports, and Gaines was present in the White House when he signed it.

In March, West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey also signed the Riley Gaines Act into law to safeguard women’s spaces. The legislation reaffirms longstanding meanings of terms such as male and female and protects private women-only facilities such as locker rooms. When President Trump took office in January, he was lauded by Gaines and others as a ‘champion for women’ due to his promise to end former President Joe Biden’s gender extremism.