Barbara Ehardt is an American politician and former college basketball coach serving as a member of the Idaho House of Representatives from the 33rd district.
Early life and education
Ehardt was born and raised in Idaho Falls, Idaho. She earned an associate degree in general studies from North Idaho College and a Bachelor of Science degree in English and language arts education from Idaho State University, where she played on the Idaho State Bengals women's basketball team.[1]
Career
College basketball
For 15 years, Ehardt worked as an NCAA Division I women's basketball coach at California State University, Fullerton, the University of California, Santa Barbara, Brigham Young University, and Washington State University.[2][3]
Politics
In 2003, Ehardt returned to her hometown of Idaho Falls, Idaho, where she has since operated a sports camp for children and managed basketball programs. Ehardt was appointed to the Idaho House of Representatives on December 27, 2017. In November 2019, Ehardt was labelled "a Republican lightning rod" by East Idaho News. During her first term in the House, she authored a bill that would restrict statewide sex education.[4]
In the legislature, Ehardt sponsored a bill that would required transgender athletes to play on teams corresponding to the gender they were assigned at birth. The bill has attracted significant criticism, both within Idaho and nationally.[5][6][7][8][9][10] Ehardt was interviewed as a part of the HBO series Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, in which she defended the bill.[11]
References
- ^ "Rep. Barbara Ehardt – Idaho State Legislature". Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ "Barbara Ehardt". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ "The Voter's Self Defense System". Vote Smart. Retrieved 2021-05-30.
- ^ "Barbara Ehardt looks back at her second year as a legislator". East Idaho News. 2019-11-21. Archived from the original on 2019-11-22. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ "Idaho Rep., A Former Basketball Player And Coach, Seeks To Bar Transgender Girls In School Sports". Northwest Public Broadcasting. 2020-02-13. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ "Ehardt does not know what she does not know". The Lewiston Tribune. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ Minsberg, Talya (2020-05-29). "'Boys Are Boys and Girls Are Girls': Idaho Is First State to Bar Some Transgender Athletes". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ Brassil, Gillian R.; Longman, Jeré (2020-08-19). "Who Should Compete in Women's Sports? There Are 'Two Almost Irreconcilable Positions'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ Levin, Dan (2020-06-15). "A Clash Across America Over Transgender Rights". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ "New Idaho Laws Target Transgender Residents". NPR.org. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ Richert, Kevin (2020-09-23). "HBO spotlights Idaho's transgender athletics ban". Idaho Education News. Retrieved 2020-10-07.