California town rallies behind Trump as it hosts track and field championship amid trans athlete controversy
Clovis, California, will be the epicenter in the political battle over trans athletes in girls' sports this weekend.
The town is set to host the state track and field championships, which has been thrust into the national spotlight amid a trans athlete competing in the girls' category after President Donald Trump called out the situation on Truth Social this week.
Dianne Pearce, the town's mayor pro tem, told Fox News Digital she has been actively lobbying to make Trump aware of the situation for weeks and got her fellow local officials involved.
"I've been in touch with the White House legislative affairs office to kind of see what would be needed from this community, from the Clovis area to show our support for the Trump administration's efforts to get California to comply with Title IX and his ["Keeping Men out of Women's Sports"] executive order," Pearce said.
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Pearce said her path to getting the White House involved was to "amplify the voices" of the town's residents, who only support female athletes competing in girls' sports.
Pearce succeeded in that goal, which culminated in a press conference involving state and local leaders speaking out in support of Trump's executive order and against Democrats for enabling trans athletes to play in California girls' sports ahead of the championship meet.
Pearce says Trump's post was a driving factor in driving enthusiasm for the cause.
The press conference featured statements from Pearce, Clovis Unified School District board trustee Tiffany Stoker Madsen, state Assemblyman David Tangipa, who represents the district where Clovis is based, U.S. House Rep. Vince Fong, who also represents the district where Clovis is based, and Fresno County supervisors Gary Bredefeld and Nathan Maxson, all speaking in support of Trump's agenda on the issue.
"We must stand for what is true and what is fair, especially in areas where biological differences make a difference," said Stoker Madsen. "What is happening in women's sports is wrong. These female athletes deserve a level playing field… I urge Governor Newsom and our California state legislatures to protect the women of California."
Other residents and local officials, including Mayor Vong Mouanoutoua, stood behind the speakers in solidarity with the pro-Trump stance.
While Mouanoutoua and Pearce are both Republicans, Clovis as a town has leaned left in recent years, albeit less left than other parts of the deep-blue state. The town's county of Fresno voted in favor of Trump in the 2024 election by a margin of 50.9% to 46.5%. However, the county voted Democrat in every prior presidential election dating back to 2008.
Now, the issue of trans athletes appears to be potentially pushing the town, or at least its leadership, even further into Trump's corner. And residents will get an up-close look at the impact of the issue at this weekend's title meet.
The state title meet will take place at Buchanan High School's Veterans Memorial Stadium, with the preliminary round on Friday and the finals on Saturday. The event is expected to feature protesters and security.
In Trump's Tuesday Truth Social post, he claimed he would be "ordering local authorities, if necessary, to not allow the transitioned person to compete in the State Finals."
Pearce said she has no knowledge of this being communicated to the town's police force.
"As far as I know that has not occurred," she said.
A Clovis Unified Police Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital that they are also unaware of any communication with Trump involving security procedures for the event. Still, Pearce is expecting a vigilante police presence at the event.
"They are prepared to make sure that this weekend's state championships are a safe environment for our athletes and their families and those who choose to come out and support them this weekend," Pearce said.
Once the competition begins, all eyes will be on the trans athlete, AB Hernandez of Jurupa Valley High School. Hernandez has dominated in girls' long jump and triple jump this postseason, taking first place in both events at the Southern Sectional finals on May 17 and the state qualifiers on May 24.
Hernandez has garnered scrutiny during the athlete's dominant postseason run, often getting heckled by spectators at the meets. Pearce hopes that spectators treat Hernandez with respect during the events on Friday and Saturday.
"I expect people to treat this athlete with compassion. I think, unfortunately, the failures of the adults who set this policy created this situation. They have allowed this particular athlete to be in a position where controversy surrounds him wherever he goes, and I think that's unfortunate," Pearce said.
"I don't think anybody should do anything to make him unsafe while he's here in Clovis competing, but again, it's unfair for him to be in the girls' division."
Pearce said her "worst-case scenario" for this weekend's meet would be a lack of respect and security for any of the competitors involved.
"If there is anything that isn't respectful and challenges the safety and security of the environment and the atmosphere, that would be terrible," Pearce said. "These kids deserve better than that. They've been failed by the adults already at the legislative level and the policy level by the CIF, I hope those attendants don't fail them as well."
What Pearce does hope to see is the female athletes emerge victorious in their respective events. However, she is also prepared for more potential fallout from the meet after helping to summon Trump's attention to the situation.
Trump's insistence on enforcing his executive order has already resulted in a months-long feud between his administration and the Democrat-controlled state of Maine. The feud has resulted in multiple funding freezes, which have already been reversed, and a lawsuit against the state by the U.S. Department of Justice.
With the Justice Department launching an investigation against California this week after Trump's post, Pearce knows that her state could very well be next in line for funding cuts on the issue. Additionally, as a public employee, she knows that it could affect her and her colleagues, but Pearce would fully support any funding cuts to her state over the issue anyway. To her, it is not a hard decision to support.
"It's not a hard decision to come to, because more important to me is that our girls and that their spaces are respected and protected," Pearce said. "If they have to threaten that type action against CIF, Governor Newsom and state legislature that they would pull federal funding from the state, again, the decision rests with those leaders. They can do the right thing and we don't even have to talk about this."
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