Arizona Republicans fight culture war in battleground state

The decision on whether to sign the bills lies with Republican Gov. Doug Ducey, who has been mum. Advocates on both sides of the issues moved swiftly to pressure him to sign or veto the bills.

Ducey opposes abortion rights and is widely expected to sign that bill. He has less of a track record on transgender issues, but has occasionally bucked the social conservatives in his party on issues affecting the LGBTQ community.

Last year, he vetoed a bill barring all classroom discussions about gender identity, sexual orientation or HIV/AIDS without parental permission. He later signed a scaled back version.

“Governor Ducey needs to veto these hateful bills; lives are in the balance,” Kell Olson, a staff attorney in Tucson for the LGBTQ rights group Lambda Legal, said in a statement.

Likewise, Cathi Herrod, the influential head of the social conservative group Center for Arizona Policy, blasted an email alert to the group’s supporters urging them to contact Ducey and press him to sign the sports participation bill.

“LET’S STAND UP FOR WOMENS SPORTS IN ARIZONA!” Herrod wrote.

Arizona, Florida and West Virginia could join Mississippi in adopting a 15-week abortion ban, and nearly a dozen have limited participation in girls sports. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott ordered state officials to investigate gender-affirming care as child abuse, and Arkansas banned it in a bill similar to Arizona’s. Both directives were put on hold by courts. A Florida bill awaiting the governor’s action would bar classroom instruction about gender identity and sexual orientation before fourth grade, which critics have dubbed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.