LOS ANGELES — After weeks of criticism from political allies, Gov. Gavin Newsom explained why he shared his belief that it's unfair for transgender athletes to compete in women's sports.

Newsom, in a recent interview with The Times, said that although he had been deliberating over the issue for years, he didn't set up the interview with conservative personality Charlie Kirk to express his views and break news on his podcast last month.

The governor said the moment happened organically after Kirk "pushed so hard" on the topic and referenced a California transgender high school athlete who beat their competitors by 8 feet in the triple jump.

"And then asked me, 'Tell me, that's not fair?' And I looked at him, I said, 'You're right. That's not,'" Newsom said. "And so it wasn't some grand design. And I know, I know that hurt a lot of people. But respectfully, I just disagree with those on the other side of this."

The governor was referring to the political left. Progressives and advocates for the transgender community within his own party accused him of betraying a group that had supported his political rise.

State Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, said Newsom's comments were "devastating and depressing" from someone who had been such an ally of the LGBTQ+ community. Newsom's critics also accused him of flip-flopping. They pointed to his previous support for the California law signed by former Gov. Jerry Brown that allowed trans students to compete in sports and use bathrooms based on their gender preference.

Some Democrats alleged that Newsom, whom many consider a future presidential contender, strategically abandoned a vulnerable group of people after Donald Trump and Republicans made the issue of trans athletes competing in women's sports a liability for Democrats during the 2024 election.

Republicans immediately began pressuring Newsom to back state legislation to ban transgender athletes from participating in youth and collegiate sports. The governor has declined to take a position on the proposals, which are scheduled to be considered during a legislative committee hearing Tuesday.

"This is stunning," said Assemblymember Bill Essayli, R-Corona on the social media site X. "Talk is cheap Gavin Newsom."

In an interview with The Times, Newsom said he's "been struggling with this for some time."

He said he and his aides had discussed and sought advice on how to find a balance when transgender athletes competing against women became an issue in California, including during controversy over San Jose State's transgender volleyball player last year. He also referenced a situation in 2023 where two trans athletes declined to compete in a California Interscholastic Federation state high school track and field finals competition after facing backlash for competing in girls sports.

"I mean, we've been exploring this for a couple years quietly behind the scenes, and we ... couldn't land," Newsom said.

The governor touched on that introspection during his podcast with Kirk.

"Completely fair on the issue of fairness. I completely agree. So that's easy to call out the unfairness of that," Newsom told Kirk. "There's also a humility and grace that these poor people are more likely to commit suicide, have anxiety and depression, and the way that people talk down to vulnerable communities is an issue that I have a hard time with as well. So both things I can hold in my hand. How can we address this issue with the kind of decency that I think you know is inherent in you, but not always expressed on the issue?"

The governor went on tell Kirk he had "stress-tested" this issue before commenting on the rarity of transgender athletes in the NCAA.

In an interview with The Times, Newsom pushed back on the idea that he could have shared his perspective during the 2024 election cycle and helped his party navigate an unpopular issue with voters. Two-thirds of Americans said trans athletes should be required to compete on teams that match their sex assigned at birth, according to a Pew Research survey in February.

"I didn't have a podcast," Newsom said. "I wasn't having that conversation. I was out there on the campaign trail in the big blue bubble, on the big blue bus, in the big blue crowds having big blue conversations."

Newsom said parents at his kids soccer games have come up to him and shared their concerns about transgender athletes competing against girls in youth sports. They're often Democrats, he said, good people who celebrate the gay community and aren't "transphobic."

The governor also defended his own record of support for the transgender community. He pointed to legislation he signed last year that prohibited school districts from requiring teachers to notify parents about gender identity preferences, which the Trump administration launched a federal investigation over last week. He also noted his 2022 appointment of the first openly transgender judge in the U.S., Andi Mudryk, to the Superior Court of Sacramento County.

Although some people reached out individually and commended him, Newsom said some of his "most loyal friends" said they were shocked and were reevaluating their support for him.

"I've had a solid, a solid record on a lot of issues, and for people to question, you know, to talk in disloyal terms, made me actually start to believe the critique from the right a little bit more," Newsom said. "I always thought the right overstated how judgmental my party was, and I'll be candid with you, I have a deeper understanding now of that critique than I ever, ever, ever understood."

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