AP Kansas

Kansas’ first transgender lawmaker not seeking reelection

Published June 10, 2022 2:13 PM

By JOHN HANNA
AP Political Writer

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The first transgender state legislator elected in Kansas is not seeking reelection. Democratic state Rep. Stephanie Byers, of Wichita, said Friday that she is moving to Texas so that she and her wife can take care of her wife’s aging parents. Byers was elected in 2020 and quickly became a leading legislative opponent of unsuccessful Republican proposals to ban transgender athletes from girls’ and women’s school and college sports. Byers also found herself in a media spotlight in April when a Republican Wichita-area lawmaker complained in an email about the “transgender female who is now in our restrooms in the Capitol.” Byers said those comments did not influence her decision.

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