Hating Trans People Is Not A Political Strategy, Say Winning U.S. LGBTQ+ Officials

In the wake of the recent U.S. 2026 mid-term elections, dubbed by some a “blue tsunami” that saw 17 LGBTQIA+ Congressional candidates elected, many are pointing to the Republicans’ failure as proof that anti-trans hate is no longer a winning political strategy.

Among them is newly elected non-binary Democrat Bentley Hudgins. 

Newly Elected Non-Binary Democrat Claps Back At Transphobia

In a now viral post on X, the member-elect for Georgia’s 90th House of Representatives addressed those Republicans who, despite recent historic losses, still think hating on trans people is an election strategy.

When asked which bathroom they would be using at the Capitol, Hudgins replied:

“This is why Republicans lost every statewide office and the State House in Georgia. I’m trying to lower your bills and you guys are asking me where I’m going to pee.”

The clapback was immediately met with praise, with many users criticising the Republican party’s hyperfixation on trans issues in place of concrete solutions to the country’s cost-of-living crisis.

“Republicans learned the hard way that people stop caring about fake culture war BS when the average person has to choose between buying gas or food,” one user wrote. “The grift didn’t work this time.”

Other users resorted to sarcasm.

“Who cares about education or people not being hungry and homeless,” reads another comment. “There are more important things, like which bathroom some specific people use. That’s a topic of utmost importance.”

Trans Congresswoman Sarah McBride Weighs In On The Republicans’ Mid-Term Strategy

Sarah McBride, the first openly trans person ever elected to Congress, weighed in on the Republican Party’s weighty emphasis on trans issues ahead of the recent election. According to the Delaware representative, who is now approaching her second term, it simply wasn’t the winning strategy.

“Anti-trans politics was a flop this election,” McBride told the Human Rights Campaign, the United States’ largest LGBTQ+ advocacy group. “The American people are tired of a politics of cruelty that does nothing to lower costs or address corruption.”

According to a Human Rights Campaign statistic reported by The 19th, Republicans poured $400 million into anti-trans ads this past election cycle, despite polling ahead of election day consistently ranking trans issues low on the list of priorities held by everyday Americans.