Two Kern High School District board members are facing a recall effort after voting for a controversial resolution on women’s sports.
The board passed the resolution in August with a narrow 3–2 vote. The measure supports “fairness in women’s sports” and aligns with the Trump administration’s stance, but it contradicts California law, which allows transgender athletes to compete in girls’ sports.
During Monday night’s meeting, community member Penny Lepisto filed a notice of intent to recall board members David Manriquez and Steven Rodrigue.
“My reasoning for the recall is that they voted to allow biological boys to play in girls’ sports,” Lepisto said. “That was the tip-off. That was the icing on the cake for the recall.”
Lepisto said she received strong support for the effort. “It was very easy to get the signatures I needed to get this moving forward,” she said.
Reverend Angelo Frazier, who also attended the meeting, backed the recall effort. “Boys in girls’ sports? No,” he said. “This doesn’t require a lot of meditation. This is obvious.”
The recall attempt follows months of community debate and growing tension over the board’s stance on girls’ sports and transgender participation.
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