Voters Side with GOP against Gender-Transition Treatments for Minors

Florida governor Ron DeSantis gets a lot of flak for his vigorous prosecution of “right-wing culture wars,” and not just from the Left. “Culture wars are not solved by the government,” said New Hampshire governor Chris Sununu in a recent jab at DeSantis. That is true, but a consistent conservatism that rejects the heavy hand of authority in the conduct of private affairs is not opposed to the application of state power in matters that are the proper province of even a limited government. Nor is conservatism always forced to choose between doing what’s right and doing what’s popular. DeSantis’s hostility toward what the press euphemistically calls “gender-affirming care” for children, to take one example, is both.

In August of last year, Florida became the eighth U.S. state to prohibit surgical or hormonal remedies designed to facilitate a transition in minors experiencing gender dysphoria. The outcry among transgender activists was deafening, but the general public doesn’t seem to share their concerns.

About the Author

Noah Rothman

Noah Rothman is a senior writer at National Review. His third book, Blood and Progress: A Century of Left-Wing Violence, was published by Hachette in May 2026.

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Florida governor Ron DeSantis gets a lot of flak for his vigorous prosecution of “right-wing culture wars,” and not just from the Left. “Culture wars are not solved by the government,” said New Hampshire governor Chris Sununu in a recent jab at DeSantis. That is true, but a consistent conservatism that rejects the heavy hand of authority in the conduct of private affairs is not opposed to the application of state power in matters that are the proper province of even a limited government. Nor is conservatism always forced to choose between doing what’s right and doing what’s popular. DeSantis’s hostility toward what the press euphemistically calls “gender-affirming care” for children, to take one example, is both.

In August of last year, Florida became the eighth U.S. state to prohibit surgical or hormonal remedies designed to facilitate a transition in minors experiencing gender dysphoria. The outcry among transgender activists was deafening, but the general public doesn’t seem to share their concerns.

About the Author

Noah Rothman

Noah Rothman is a senior writer at National Review. His third book, Blood and Progress: A Century of Left-Wing Violence, was published by Hachette in May 2026.