The United States Supreme Court has mandated that the Maine legislature count the votes of a GOP lawmaker who was censured for publicly identifying a transgender teen athlete in an online post that went viral. On Tuesday, the court decided in favor of Rep. Laurel Libby, following her emergency request to have her voting rights reinstated while her legal challenge against the disciplinary action is ongoing. Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented from the decision.
Typically, the Supreme Court does not provide extensive explanations when ruling on emergency appeals, and this case was no exception. Justice Jackson expressed that the situation is not urgent enough to necessitate the Supreme Court’s involvement because no critical votes are imminent that could be swayed by Libby’s participation. Nonetheless, she conceded that the case is complex and acknowledges that Libby could ultimately succeed.
Rep. Libby was censured by the Democratic-majority state House for allegedly breaching its ethics code, putting a student in potential danger with her viral social-media post. Her censure involved being silenced and stripped of her voting privileges on the House floor until she issued an apology, which she has not done.
Arguing that the reprimand infringes upon her free speech rights, Libby welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision, highlighting that it restores her legislative voice, thereby reinstating representation for her constituents. “This is a victory not just for my constituents, but for the Constitution itself,” Libby declared.
Maine’s legal representatives contended that Libby retains other avenues for legislative participation and could regain her voting rights with an apology. The state’s attorney general’s office refrained from commenting on the matter on Tuesday. In response to the ruling, Maine House Speaker Ryan Fecteau stated that the House would adhere to the Supreme Court’s ruling and temporarily reinstated Libby’s voting rights.
The Supreme Court’s decision effectively stays a lower court’s assessment that the disciplinary measure was not severe enough to justify judicial interference in legislative operations.
The controversy originated from Libby’s February post regarding a high school athlete who had won a girls’ track event. Libby pointed out that the athlete had previously participated in boys’ track competitions and accompanied the post with a photo and partial identification of the student.
The social media post by Rep. Libby drew attention and fueled a public debate that also involved former President Donald Trump and Maine’s Democratic Governor Janet Mills. Subsequently, the Trump administration initiated a legal case against the state for not adhering to federal directives aiming to ban transgender individuals from participating in sports aligned with their gender identity.