Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne (R) vowed to protect the state’s law prohibiting boys from competing in girls sports — taking the case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, if necessary.

His comments came during an episode of the Grand Canyon Times Podcast:

“The papers have been full of stories about girls who work hard on their sports, they practice all day long, they have dreams of making varsity or maybe getting a college scholarship, maybe the Olympics,” Horne told host Leyla Gulen on the Grand Canyon Times Podcast. “And then they have to compete against a biological male. Their dreams are shattered, they’re devastated.”

“Sometimes I wonder why more people don’t have sympathy for them, they seem to be the lost people in this equation.” Horne said. “I will take the case to the US Supreme Court if I have to. If I get it to the US Supreme Court I feel very confident I’ll win there.”

The “Save Women’s Sports Act,” signed by then-Gov. Doug Ducey (R) in March 2022, prohibits biological males from competing in girls’ sports at the K-12 and collegiate levels.

A federal lawsuit challenging the law was filed in April 2023. Attorney General Kris Mayes (D) is refusing to defend the state law in court.

Horne announced in April that his office would hire his own legal team to defend the law.