Welcome to the Media Round Up! Each week we’re collecting and sharing our favorite gender + politics stories.

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Virginia to Elect First Woman Governor

Virginia is likely to elect their first woman governor this year with the upcoming election in November. Lt. Governor Winsome Earle-Sears (R) has been officially named the Republican candidate for the race by the Virginia GOP. She was the only Republican candidate who got enough signatures to be placed on the ballot. Earle-Sears will compete against former Representative Abigail Spanberger (D), who served three terms in Congress before choosing to run for governor. She ran unopposed for the Democratic nominee spot. Either woman will be the first woman governor in Virginia’s history. If Earle-Sears wins, she will be the first Black woman governor in American history. Only 51 women have ever served as governors in U.S. history.

Federal Firings

On Wednesday, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. temporarily allowed the Trump administration to remove the leaders of two independent agencies while their challenges to their dismissals proceed in court. President Trump fired Cathy Harris of the Merit Systems Protection Board and Gwynne A. Wilcox of the National Labor Relations Board in February; though federal law requires the president to provide a reason for their removal, Trump did not cite a cause.

Over the weekend, the Trump administration also fired U.S. Navy Vice Adm. Shoshana Chatfield, the only woman on NATO’s military committee. Officials said that they believe Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth made the decision in response to comments Chatfield made about supporting diversity in the military. Chatfield is the third top female official to be fired under the current Trump administration – in February, Hegseth fired chief of naval operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti, and Trump himself fired Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Linda Fagan a day after he was sworn into office.

Some high profile women in top positions are choosing to leave the government on their own accord – Melanie Krause, the acting commissioner of the IRS, is resigning over a deal to share immigrants’ tax data with ICE for the purpose of identifying and deporting illegal immigrants in the United States.

Long Term Setbacks for Women

Experts claim that the consequences of the Trump administration’s purge of thousands of federal workers from the Department of Health and Human Services could “put women’s lives at risk.” More than seven thousand federal employees across the FDA, CDC, NIH, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services were placed on administrative leave on Tuesday morning; the cuts, which were part of President Trump and Elon Musk’s larger purge of the federal workforce, were widespread and erased entire departments “without regard to experience.” Layoffs at the Reproductive Health and Violence Prevention divisions mean that research and programs focusing on women’s health have been gutted, and the repercussions will be “far-reaching.” Additionally, the CDC’s Division of Reproductive Health team was cut this week; the group focused on emergency preparedness for pregnant and postpartum women and infants. With such grave threats to women’s healthcare on the horizon, many are considering just how far the Trump administration will set American women back. The impact of his policies are likely to outlast his term in office, leading some to fear that his administration will lead progress “back to the Stone Age.”

Where Women are Surging

Despite many uncertainties about women’s freedoms under the current presidential administration, women continue to make strides in the political arena and elsewhere. In the political sphere, nearly forty percent of municipal office holders in California are women, far above the national average of just over thirty-two perfect. According to a new analysis from the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University, California is now the seventh in the nation in gender parity at the local level. Of the one hundred municipal office holders in San Diego, for example, forty-three are women.

In competitive sports, women continue to make gains: on Wednesday, the International Olympic Committee approved the inclusion of more women’s teams in the 2028 Los Angeles Games. The women’s soccer tournament will expand from twelve to sixteen teams, making it larger than the men’s tournament for the first time in Olympic history; additionally, women’s water polo will expand from ten to twelve teams, now reaching parity with the number of men’s teams in the event.

Measures to Block Women from Voting

The House of Representatives blocked a bipartisan proxy voting measure led by Representatives Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) and Brittany Pettersen (D-CO) after a standstill with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA). The proposal aimed to allow new parents, or those away from the House in an emergency, to still vote in matters via proxy. Luna and Petersen proposed the legislation after being unable to vote after giving birth, leading to both women bringing their newborns onto the House floor. Johnson has agreed to “vote pairing,” where an absent member’s vote is ‘paired’ with a member voting on the opposite side. Two absent members, who plan to vote differently from each other, can have their position reflected in the official record. Petersen is unhappy with the solution and still pushing for proxy voting, saying Congress “needs more women” and “more moms.”

Congress is potentially voting on the SAVE Act this week, a measure that could disenfranchise almost 70 million married women. The bill requires people who register to vote to provide documentary proof of citizenship in-person, including a birth certificate that matches the person’s current name. For almost 70 million married women, their current last name does not reflect the one on their birth certificate, which could potentially prevent them from registering or updating their registration. Millions of Americans do not have access to documentary proof of citizenship. To read more about the bill, read Lily Carver’s Gender on the Ballot blog post here.

State Gender News

The Alabama House of Representatives unanimously passed a bill this week that removes state sale taxes on menstrual products, diapers, and baby formula. Data shows that women spend anywhere from $120-$180 on menstrual products alone in a year, and baby formula can cost anywhere from $760-$2,000 for a year’s supply. County and municipal sales tax still apply unless either take action to remove it. The bill is awaiting approval in the Senate for a September effect date.

A transgender woman in Florida was arrested at the state capitol for using the women’s restroom last month. Marcy Rheintgen told Florida State Capitol police that she was intentionally going to break the law, and they arrested her as she did not leave the restroom when asked after spending just a minute or less inside. Rheintgen, 20, said she spent 24 hours in jail and had previously written 160 letters to Florida officials saying she would use the women’s bathroom and ask that they not arrest her. Rheintgen was told she was in violation of Florida’s “Safety in Privacy Act” that prohibits transgender people from using restrooms that align with their gender identity. In a letter to Florida representatives, she said “I know that you know in your heart that transgender people are human too, and that you can’t arrest us away.”