Election News

Voters trust Kamala Harris on trans equality issues over Donald Trump

The presidential debate between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris is shown at a watch party hosted by the Travis County and Hays County Republicans at Pinballz Kingdom in Buda Tuesday September 10, 2024.
The presidential debate between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris is shown at a watch party hosted by the Travis County and Hays County Republicans at Pinballz Kingdom in Buda Tuesday September 10, 2024. Photo: Jay Janner/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via IMAGN

A new Fox News poll shows that on one of the most contentious issues of this election – equal rights for transgender people – voters trust Vice President Kamala Harris more than they trust former President Donald Trump.

The poll also showed that Harris has a 2-point lead.

Harris leads on most issues, including abortion, health care, and election integrity. However, the strongest lead she has is on transgender rights.

Harris leads Trump by 16 points on the question, “Who do trust more to handle transgender issues?” 56% of respondents said that they trust Harris more, while 40% said they trust Trump more.

The question about who voters trust more on abortion, health care, and climate change yielded similar responses. When it came to taxes and guns, respondents were evenly divided, and respondents said they trusted Trump more on the economy, Israel/Gaza, and immigration.

Republicans have spent the last four years stirring up hatred and fear regarding trans Americans, targeting them with bans on gender-affirming care, bathroom bills, and sports bans at the state and federal levels. However, that tactic may hurt Trump more than help him.

Harris holds the lead among most groups when it comes to trust on trans equality issues. She is ahead by 10 points among men and 21 points among women. Among voters aged 65 and older, she leads by 21 points, and among voters under 35 she leads by 27 points.

Even among Independents and swing state voters, Harris is ahead by 19 points and 10 points, respectively. Republican voters and other conservative-leaning demographics like white evangelicals were the only groups to say they trust Trump more on trans equality issues.

Trump has repeatedly launched anti-trans attacks against Harris. He has falsely claimed on several occasions that teachers are performing sex change surgeries on children and sending them home as “another gender.”

Trump has also criticized her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D), for making the state a sanctuary for transgender individuals escaping anti-trans laws in other states. On Fox News, Trump said Walz is “very heavy into transgender. Anything transgender he thinks is great, and he’s not where the country is on anything.”

Trump is vehemently anti-trans, saying he would put in place a total ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth and national bathroom restrictions for trans students.

In his “Agenda 47,” in the section “President Trump’s Plan to Protect Children From Left-Wing Gender Insanity,” Trump says he would “ask Congress to pass a bill establishing that the only genders recognized by the United States government are male and female — and they are assigned at birth.”

Also in Agenda 47, Trump said he would pass a federal law banning “child sexual mutilation,” though gender-affirming surgeries are almost never performed on minors. He also says that he will “ask Congress to permanently stop federal taxpayer dollars from being used to promote or pay for these procedures.”

Further, in Agenda 47, his “Plan to Save American Education and Give Power Back to Parents” would include a law that “keeps men out of women’s sports.”

The new poll shows that this extremist fear-mongering and lies about trans American does not seem to be having the desired effect.

Subscribe to the LGBTQ Nation newsletter and be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Don't forget to share:


Support vital LGBTQ+ journalism

Reader contributions help keep LGBTQ Nation free, so that queer people get the news they need, with stories that mainstream media often leaves out. Can you contribute today?

Cancel anytime · Proudly LGBTQ+ owned and operated

Lesbian firefighter may get $1.3 million for enduring 21 years of shocking harassment

Previous article

Ellen DeGeneres says toxic workplace allegations “devastated” her

Next article