TOPEKA — Today, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) — the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization — hailed the victory of Gov. Laura Kelly in her bid for reelection.

Human Rights Campaign National Campaign Director Geoff Wetrosky released the following statement:

“Extremist forces tried to use Gov. Kelly’s veto of anti-transgender legislation as their key argument against her reelection. Her opponent made it a central point of his campaign. This did not work. The fact is, Kansans already know Laura Kelly – they know that she understands the needs of the people of her state, that she will treat them with respect and dignity and govern responsibly and fairly. She has been a strong ally to the LGBTQ+ community in Kansas, and the Human Rights Campaign congratulates her on her reelection.”

Twice – in 2021 and 2022 – Kansas lawmakers have sent bills to Gov. Kelly seeking to ban transgender athletes from taking part in school sports on the teams that match their gender identity. Kelly vetoed both bills, and the legislature was unable to overturn her veto both times. During this campaign cycle, the Republican Governors’ Association ran a series of ads attacking Kelly for her vetoes, while her opponent stated that he would sign such a bill if elected – a strategy that the voters of Kansas rejected on Election Day.

HRC’s Commitment to Kansas

HRC worked this year to engage our volunteers, members and supporters to mobilize the almost 250,000 Equality Voters in Kansas in support of Gov. Kelly and other pro-equality candidates up and down the ballot. Equality Voters are a voting bloc of demographically and geographically diverse Americans who are united by the advancement of LGBTQ+ equality. Equality Voters are younger, more racially diverse, and more female than the general electorate, they recognize and trust the HRC brand, and they are more likely to identify with issue-specific organizations than candidates or political parties.

The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people. HRC envisions a world where LGBTQ+ people are embraced as full members of society at home, at work and in every community.