An Oregon school district has asked Senator Ted Cruz’s campaign to remove two ads targeting transgender athletes. The ads feature a photo of two teenage girls who are not transgender, and their parents did not give permission for the photo to be used.
The ads are part of a media blitz against Cruz’s opponent, Rep. Colin Allred, over his support for trans-inclusive policies. The ads also feature high-profile transgender athletes like Lia Thomas and CeCé Telfer.
The Beaverton School District representative sent an email to the Cruz campaign asking for the ads to be removed from all platforms. The representative mentioned that the girls in the photo are minors and that neither the families nor the school gave permission for the photo to be used.
The Cruz campaign defended the use of the photo, stating that it features a female athlete who spoke out against boys participating in girls’ sports. However, they did not directly address the school district’s request to take down the ad or whether the ad is misleading.
Senator Cruz has been a vocal opponent of trans-inclusive policies and introduced a bill in 2021 to prevent transgender women and girls from competing on female sports teams. In a recent debate, Cruz referred to transgender women as “biological boys” and made false claims about the Equality Act.
Cruz and Allred are in a close race for one of Texas’s Senate seats, with Cruz currently predicted to have a 76% chance of winning reelection. The controversy surrounding the ads targeting transgender athletes adds a new dimension to the already heated campaign.