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The California governor made the claim in an interview this week. Read on for our fact-check.
This week on The Ezra Klein Show, a podcast hosted by The New York Times, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said he’s signed more pro-transgender bills into law than any governor.
“I want to see trans kids,” said Newsom, a Democrat. “I have a trans godson. There’s no governor who has signed more pro-trans legislation than I have. No one has been a stronger advocate for the LGBTQ community.”
His statement about pro-trans legislation is likely true, especially given the volume of such legislation in California.
Related: California Gov. Newsom is considering a presidential run. Here's his LGBTQ+ rights record
Not all states track legislation this way, and most national groups track state by state but not by governor. But based on LGBTQ+ group Equality California’s database of legislation it has backed, plus The Advocate’s reporting, we count 47 pro-LGBTQ+ bills Newsom has signed into law since taking office in 2019, of which 21 specifically benefited transgender people. Most of the generally pro-LGBTQ+ bills benefit trans people as well.
Among the specifically pro-trans bills are one making California a sanctuary state for out-of-state young people and their families seeking gender-affirming care; one preventing teachers from being forced to out trans students to their families; several addressing name and gender changes on official documents, either easing the process, assuring usage, or protecting confidentiality; and one requiring single-user restrooms to be labeled all-gender.
He has vetoed some pro-trans bills, such as, this year, one that would have required an inclusive view of gender in health education classes. He said the legislation should wait until a state study of health curricula was done.
Related: The 10 states that have passed pro-LGBTQ+ bills — or defeated the most anti-LGBTQ+ ones — in 2025
Several other Democratic governors are deeply supportive of trans people, such as Jared Polis of Colorado, J.B. Pritzker of Illinois, Maura Healey of Massachusetts, Tina Kotek of Oregon, Janet Mills of Maine, Tony Evers of Wisconsin, Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, Tim Walz of Minnesota, Andy Beshear of Kentucky, Laura Kelly of Kansas — and there are several more. Some have signed pro-trans bills into law, but their states haven’t seen such a volume of legislation to protect the rights of the trans community, and in some cases, they have vetoed anti-trans bills. Those who’ve done so include Evers, Beshear, and Kelly, with Beshear's and Kelly’s vetoes overridden by Republican-majority legislatures.
Newsom outraged many trans people and their supporters, however, with his comments this year on a podcast with right-wing activist Charlie Kirk. Newsom said letting trans girls and women compete in sports alongside cisgender females is “deeply unfair.” Newsom has repeated that a few times, including in the interview with Klein.
“You have to accommodate the reality of those whose rights are being taken away as we advance the rights of the trans community, in terms of the fairness of athletic competition,” he said. “And I just think that’s not a bigoted position. And it’s an example of some of the things I’ve been saying about being judgmental, dismissing people, throwing that person out of the party.”
But there is no evidence that trans female athletes have an inherent advantage over their cisgender counterparts, and there are many other factors besides gender assigned at birth that affect athletic performance.
However, Newsom has sometimes stood up for trans athletes. He has resisted the Trump administration’s pressures on the state to rescind its trans-inclusive school sports policy.
The interview with Klein also set off another skirmish in Newsom’s feud with right-wing billionaire Elon Musk. Musk has a trans daughter, Vivian Jenna Wilson, who has cut ties with him. Musk repeatedly deadnames and misgenders her.
Musk’s political action committee, America PAC, shared a clip of Klein’s interview with Newsom on the social media platform Musk owns, X (formerly Twitter). Newsom’s press office responded by resharing the post with the comment “We’re sorry your daughter hates you, Elon.” Musk replied by deadnaming and misgendering her again, saying she “has a tragic mental illness caused by the evil woke mind virus you push on vulnerable children.” We won't share the latter post because of the deadnaming and misgendering.
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