President Donald Trump issued a stern warning Tuesday, promising “large-scale fines” against the state of California following the victory of a biological male in multiple girls’ track and field events. Trump condemned the decision to allow transgender athlete AB Hernandez to compete and win at the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) State Track and Field Championships.
“A Biological Male competed in California Girls State Finals, WINNING BIG, despite the fact that they were warned by me not to do so,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “As Governor Gavin Newscum fully understands, large scale fines will be imposed!”
Hernandez, a transgender athlete from Jurupa Valley, won first place in the high jump and triple jump, and second in the long jump during the May 30 championship in Clovis. The victories prompted backlash from parents and athletes and drew immediate attention from federal authorities.
Trump’s statement follows a prior warning to Governor Gavin Newsom and California officials threatening the loss of federal funding if a biological male participated in the girls’ competition. In response to the controversy, CIF amended its rules to allow biologically female competitors who finished behind Hernandez to also qualify and share podium positions.
The Department of Justice has since launched a Title IX investigation into California’s transgender athlete policies, giving the state a June 9 deadline to comply with federal mandates. The U.S. Department of Education is also conducting a separate review, which began earlier this year.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta responded, stating the state remains committed to “defending and upholding California laws” that protect transgender students from discrimination. Meanwhile, public opinion in California has shifted. A bipartisan poll from the Public Policy Institute of California revealed that 65% of adults, 64% of likely voters, and 71% of public school parents support restricting transgender athletes to teams based on biological sex.
Governor Newsom himself admitted during a podcast in March that transgender participation in girls’ sports is “deeply unfair.”
