The Maine House voted 115-16 Wednesday to restore the speaking privileges of Rep. Laurel Libby of Auburn after a monthslong censure that had prevented her from participating in floor debates after she posted a photo of a transgender high school athlete on social media in February.

“This is a victory not just for me — but for every Mainer who believes in the rule of law, the First Amendment, and the right to be represented in their government,” Libby said in a statement. “The Democrats caved because they knew they were losing in court. They’ve now been forced to admit what the Constitution has said all along: elected representatives cannot be silenced for speaking the truth.”
The House voted 75-70 in February to censure Libby. The U.S. Supreme Court restored her right to vote after she filed a lawsuit last month, but an attempt to read into the record how she would have voted on issues had she not been censured was met with opposition when it came up late at night last week.
Libby was allowed to read her missed votes into the record on Wednesday, the final day of the legislative session.
Assistant Majority Leader Lori Gramlich, D-Old Orchard Beach, was the only lawmaker who spoke on the resolution on the floor Wednesday.
Gramlich said the resolution “is not intended to absolve the representative’s actions.”
“It only rescinds the restrictions on her voting and speaking privileges,” Gramlich said.
The lawsuit sought to have Libby’s voting and speaking privileges restored, and she asked for coverage of her attorney’s fees and “any other legal or equitable relief” the court may deem appropriate. It claimed that it violated her right to free speech and that the photos of the student were already available publicly elsewhere and her argument that she is being punished for standing up for girls’ sports.
Libby filed her emergency Supreme Court appeal on April 28, after two lower courts ruled against her request. Maine state attorneys argued that she still had other ways to participate in the legislative process, such as through committee work, and that she could regain her voting privilege if she apologized. Attorney General Aaron Frey urged the Supreme Court to deny her request.
The lawsuit is still pending in lower courts.
Libby’s February post featured photos of a high school athlete who won a girls track competition and who had competed in boys track the previous year. Her post included a photo of the student and first names in quotation marks, as well as the school’s name.
The post went viral, causing the student’s school district to beef up security when students returned from February vacation. The athlete received an outpouring of support from 30 state and national groups, and hundreds of community members, who held a rally in March.
The post got the attention of the Trump administration, which has demanded that trans athletes be banned from girls and women’s sports, and it sparked a White House confrontation over the issue between Republican President Donald Trump and Democratic Maine Gov. Janet Mills. While Mills argued that the state is following federal or state laws, Trump threatened to cut off federal funding and his administration eventually filed a lawsuit against the state for not complying with his executive order.
Mills’ stance drew national attention and she earned both praise and criticism for standing up to Trump.
Libby, meanwhile, also received national attention for her defiance and position on transgender athletes, making the rounds on conservative programs and raising money in the process. She traveled to Washington, D.C., in April to stand beside U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi as she announced the administration’s lawsuit against the state for allowing transgender girls to compete in girl’s sports.
Libby and her supporters have argued that the censure was intended to silence dissent about trans athletes, while Democrats have maintained the action was taken because putting a child at risk violated House ethics standards.
Staff Writer Rachel Ohm contributed to this report.