In Colorado, signatures were submitted on Feb. 17 and Feb. 20, 2026, to the secretary of state for three ballot initiatives related to increasing penalties for the human trafficking of minors, requiring interscholastic sports teams to be designated based on biological sex, and prohibiting healthcare professionals from performing surgeries on minors that would alter their biological sex characteristics.
All three initiatives are initiated state statutes filed by Protect Kids Colorado, which describes its mission as "[protecting] kids from becoming victims of a dangerous and false ideology." At least 124,238 valid signatures must be verified for each initiative.
Initiative 108
The first measure, Initiative 108, would increase the penalties for the sexual trafficking of a minor by raising it from a Class 2 felony to a Class 1 felony. The initiative would also require a life sentence for the felony, without the possibility of parole or release.
On Feb. 17, 2026, Protect Kids Colorado announced that it had submitted over 170,000 signatures for Initiative 108.
Initiative 109
Initiative 109 would require school- and association-sponsored athletic teams to be classified in one of three categories based on biological sex: (1) males/men/boys, (2) females/women/girls, or (3) coeducational or mixed. Teams designated for females, women, or girls would not be open to male students or participants. Teams designated for males, men, or boys would not be open to female students or participants unless no corresponding female team is offered for that sport. The measure would not limit participation in teams designated as coeducational or mixed.
The ballot initiative would define females as "person[s] whose biological reproductive system is organized around the production of ova," and males as "person[s] whose biological reproductive system is organized around the production of sperm."
Each school’s governing body would be required to adopt a policy implementing the measure.
On Feb. 20, 2026, Protect Kids Colorado announced that it had submitted over 170,000 signatures for Initiative 109.
Initiative 110
The last measure filed, Initiative 110, would prohibit healthcare professionals from performing surgeries on minors "for the purpose of altering biological sex characteristics," as well as prohibit state and federal funds, Medicaid reimbursements, or insurance coverage from being used to pay for such surgeries. The phrase altering biological sex characteristics would be defined as "treatment in response to a minor’s perception of sex or gender" and exclude treatment for medically verifiable disorders of sex development or acquired physical or chemical abnormalities and male circumcision.
On Feb. 20, 2026, Protect Kids Colorado announced that it had submitted over 164,000 signatures for Initiative 110.
Measures on the ballot in Colorado for 2026
The Colorado secretary of state has until March 19 to review the validity of the signatures for Initiative 108, and March 20 to review the signatures for Initiatives 109 and 110.
If all three initiatives are verified by the secretary of state, they would join Initiatives 85 and 95 on the Nov. 3, 2026, ballot.
Initiative 85 would establish higher felony classifications and mandatory penalties for the manufacturing, dispensing, sale, and possession of fentanyl. Initiative 95 would require state and local law enforcement to notify the U.S. Department of Homeland Security after charging an individual whose immigration status is unclear when they are charged with a crime of violence, as defined by law.
Other ballot measures related to sex and sports eligibility and procedures for minors
Colorado is one of five states that could decide on ballot measures related to medical procedures for transgender minors and sex requirements for school sports teams in 2026.
In Missouri, voters will consider adopting Amendment 3, which would prohibit gender transition surgeries, as defined by law, for minors and prohibit the prescribing of hormone treatments or puberty-blocking drugs to minors, except for medical reasons.
In Maine, voters may decide on an initiative that would classify school sports teams as male, female, or co-ed and admit students to teams based on the sex listed on a student's original birth certificate.
In Washington, a ballot initiative would prohibit male students from participating in sports designated for female students. Additionally, students seeking to participate in a sport designated for female students would be required to provide a health examination and consent form from their personal healthcare provider verifying their biological sex, based on "reproductive anatomy, genetic makeup, or normal endogenously produced testosterone levels."
In Nevada, voters may decide on a constitutional amendment that would require eligibility for sports or athletic competitions in public schools and colleges to be based on the biological sex of the athlete recorded at birth, rather than gender identity or gender expression.