By Corinne Murdock |

A survey conducted in part by Arizona State University (ASU) researchers revealed that a majority of Arizonans, Californians, and Texans oppose “trans rights.”  

The survey is the latest from a joint polling project among researchers from ASU, Stanford University, and the University of Houston.

According to the survey, a majority of Arizonans opposed the idea of gender identity dictating bathroom usage by 54 percent, women’s sports participation by 63 percent, and minors receiving gender transition surgery and drugs by 51 percent. 

The researchers remarked that this pattern of majority opposition to gender ideology dictating bathroom usage, sports participation, and medical procedures existed from the blue state of California, the purple state of Arizona, to the red state of Texas. 

Independents in Arizona — now the largest voting population — opposed gender ideology dictating bathroom usage by 48 percent, women’s sports participation by 65 percent, and minors receiving gender transition surgery and drugs by 46 percent. 

Most Democrats in Arizona, as well as Texas and California, believed gender ideology should dictate bathroom usage, but were more evenly divided when it came to participation in women’s sports. Most Democrats opposed bans on gender transition procedures for minors, though there were a higher percentage of those unsure on the issue than their Republican counterparts. 

The study also reflected that women were more likely than men to support gender ideology determining bathroom usage, women’s sports participation, and minors receiving gender transition procedures across all three states. 

Additionally, those with higher levels of education were more likely to support gender ideology determining bathroom usage across all three states: those with high school degrees were less supportive than those with some college education, and those with some college education were less supportive than those with four years of college education or a postgraduate degree. However, for women’s sports and minors receiving gender transition procedures, no significant differences were noted.

The researchers also reported that the presence or absence of religious beliefs served as a strong indicator whether an individual supported or opposed gender ideology.

“Across the red, purple and blue states of Texas, Arizona and California, residents who regularly attend religious services are significantly more likely than those residents who never attend religious services to support policies that restrict the ability of transgender people to choose which bathroom to use, participate in women’s sporting events, and (for children) receive gender-affirming medical treatment,” stated the survey report. 

Over 1,000 Arizonans participated in the survey: the second in a series of five surveys, the first of which was on abortion. There, a majority across all three states expressed support for abortion with little or no restrictions (62 percent of Arizonans, 69 percent of Californians, and 54 percent of Texans). 

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.