Vote to take place Wednesday to ‘censure or expel’ transgender Montana state lawmaker
Conrad Hoyt
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The Montana House of Representatives will hold a vote on Wednesday to decide whether or not to censure or expel Democratic state Rep. Zooey Zephyr, who is transgender, after protests broke out this week in support of Zephyr.
Zephyr has not been recognized to speak on the House floor since last week when she said lawmakers who supported a bill banning transgender surgeries for minors had “blood on their hands.” Zephyr has refused to apologize. Nearly 100 protesters chanted “Let her speak” from the statehouse gallery on Monday, and seven of them were arrested and charged with criminal trespassing.
MONTANA POLICE ARREST PROTESTERS SUPPORTING ‘SILENCED’ TRANSGENDER LAWMAKER
Tuesday night, Zephyr tweeted that she was informed there would be a motion on Wednesday’s floor session to “censure or expel me.”
“I’ve also been told I’ll get a chance to speak. I will do as I have always done — rise on behalf of my constituents, in defense of my community, & for democracy itself,” Zephyr wrote.
The letter to state House members from Republican Montana House Speaker Matt Regier said the galleries in the House will be closed “to maintain decorum and ensure safety.” He added that the public will be able to observe the proceedings on the legislative branch website or from a committee room.
After the protests on Monday, Regier and Republican state Reps. Rhonda Knudsen and Sue Vinton said in a statement they would “stand firm” in commitment to “decorum, safety, and order.”
“It’s not enough for them to get the harmful bills through,” Zephyr responded. “When someone stands up and calls out their bills for the harm they cause, for the deaths they cause, they want silence. And we will not be complicit in our eradication.”
Zephyr, 34, became the first openly transgender woman elected to Montana’s legislature when she was elected last year.
The bill to ban gender-affirming care for minors is expected to be signed into law by Gov. Greg Gianforte (R-MT) after the state legislature makes amendments that he suggested.
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The vote to expel a Democratic state representative seen as problematic is not unique to Montana. Earlier this month, two Tennessee state Democrats were expelled from the state House after they, along with one other state Democrat, joined in on protests on the state House floor calling for gun reform in the wake of the Nashville school shooting.
The case made national headlines and state Reps. Justin Jones and Justin Pearson were supported by President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. One week later, both Pearson and Jones were back in their seats after being unanimously reappointed by their respective county commission councils. They will both have to run for reelection.