Judge orders Kansas to stop gender changes on driver's licenses

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International Transgender Day of Visibility rally and protest in Tucson
Protesters rally for the International Transgender Day of Visibility in Tucson, Arizona, U.S., March 31, 2023. REUTERS/Rebecca Noble/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
WASHINGTON, July 10 (Reuters) - A judge on Monday ordered Kansas to stop allowing transgender people to change the gender listed on their driver's licenses after a lawsuit filed by the state's Republican attorney general.
The state's Democratic Governor Laura Kelly and Republican Attorney General Kris Kobach have been at odds over the issue, over which the latter sued officials at the Kansas Department of Revenue.
Shawnee County District Court Judge Teresa Watson issued the temporary restraining order on Monday. The order is in effect for 14 days, and can be modified by the court.
Kobach argued that a law passed by the state legislature that went into effect this month - which defined a person's sex as male or female based on the "biological reproductive system" identified at birth - meant people could not change the sex on their driver's license and that any past changes should be reversed.
Republican lawmakers in different state legislatures across the U.S. have passed a flurry of bills, opens new tab relating to transgender youth, which proponents say are aimed at protecting minors and opponents say limit their rights.
Some states have banned teachers, opens new tab of younger children from discussing gender or sexuality, while conservative lawmakers have also proposed or passed laws restricting drag performances, opens new tab.
In June, President Joe Biden warned, opens new tab of "ugly" attacks from "hysterical" people who he said were targeting LGBTQ+ Americans, especially transgender youth.
The transgender community has also faced online attacks, opens new tab. In a recent survey published by advocacy group Anti-Defamation League (ADL), about 76% of transgender people in the U.S. said they have faced online harassment during their lifetime.

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Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington, editing by Deepa Babington

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Kanishka Singh is a breaking news reporter for Reuters in Washington DC, who primarily covers US politics and national affairs in his current role. His past breaking news coverage has spanned across a range of topics like the Black Lives Matter movement; the US elections; the 2021 Capitol riots and their follow up probes; the Brexit deal; US-China trade tensions; the NATO withdrawal from Afghanistan; the COVID-19 pandemic; and a 2019 Supreme Court verdict on a religious dispute site in his native India.

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