ALGOP Chair Scott Stadthagen Says Transgender House Candidates Have ‘Mental Disorders’ at Fairhope Event; Terri Osborne, Allison Montgomery Fire Back and Point to Easterbrook Arrest

FAIRHOPE, Ala. — Alabama Republican Party Chairman Scott Stadthagen described two transgender Democratic candidates for the Alabama House as “men who have mental disorders” during a Republican gathering in Fairhope on Thursday, Oct. 8. Both candidates responded by accusing GOP leaders of using their gender identity to distract voters from issues such as the cost of living, and by pointing to the recent arrest of a Republican state lawmaker.

What Stadthagen said

Stadthagen made the comments while speaking to the Eastern Shore Republican Women.

“We’ve got two men who have mental disorders who like to dress like women, who think they are females on the ballot this general election,” Stadthagen said. “One’s in Madison County, one’s in Baldwin County. That is a mental disorder, ladies and gentlemen.”

The candidates he referenced are Terri Osborne, the Democratic nominee in House District 96 in Baldwin County, and Allison Montgomery, the Democratic nominee challenging Republican Rep. Phillip Rigsby in House District 25 in the Huntsville and Madison area.

Stadthagen, a state representative from Hartselle, has served in the Alabama House since 2018 and was elected chairman of the state Republican Party in March.

Comments on drag legislation

During the same remarks, Stadthagen also discussed legislation aimed at restricting drag performances in front of minors.

“People said, what do you have against drags?” he said. “I have absolutely nothing against them.”

“If a man wants to dress like a woman in the privacy of his home, Roll Tide. War Eagle. Whatever you want to do, go knock yourself out, alright,” Stadthagen continued. “But when you want to do it in front of a kid and minors in a sexual, explicit manner, I’ve got a problem with that.”

Osborne: ‘Being transgender is not a mental illness’

Osborne directly disputed Stadthagen’s characterization.

“Being transgender is not a mental illness,” Osborne said. “The American Psychiatric Association has made that distinction clear. I have letters from mental health professionals stating that I am of sound mind. Does he?”

The American Psychiatric Association states that being transgender is not, in itself, a psychiatric diagnosis.

Osborne said Stadthagen and her Republican opponent, Danielle Duggar, seemed more focused on her gender than on problems facing residents of Baldwin County.

“I find it amazing that Representative Scott Stadthagen and my opponent, Danielle Duggar, seem so obsessed with my gender that they apparently have no time to discuss the problems facing the people of Alabama,” Osborne said.

She listed the issues she said voters care about: the cost of groceries, housing, insurance and health care, along with traffic, public schools and Alabama’s decision not to expand Medicaid.

“My existence is not a sexual performance, and my womanhood is not a threat to anybody’s children or any of his business,” Osborne said.

Duggar criticizes her opponent’s views

Duggar, the Republican nominee in House District 96, also spoke at Thursday’s meeting. She referred to Osborne using male pronouns and described Osborne’s views as radical.

“I have a Democratic opponent. My Democratic opponent, I think it’s safe to say since he says it, is transgender and his views are quite radical,” Duggar said. “So, he identifies as a woman, and he wants that type of ideology taught in schools. He wants to make sure that kids know they have a choice, I guess, in their gender, and this is not what we want representing us in Montgomery.”

Duggar urged Republicans to keep those views from gaining ground in Alabama.

“It’s really, really important that we don’t let this type of radical communist ideology get a foothold here in Baldwin County or anywhere in our state,” she said. “Tuberville was just saying last night, we’ve already lost like 20 states to this woke, communist, Marxist stuff and we don’t want to see Alabama go that way.”

Osborne challenges Duggar to cite a proposal

Osborne challenged Duggar to point to any proposal from her campaign calling for gender ideology to be taught in schools.

“Acknowledging the reality that transgender people exist is not indoctrination or an ideology,” Osborne said.

She accused Duggar of focusing on her identity instead of explaining how she would address residents’ needs. “Danielle, instead of telling voters what you think is wrong with me, why don’t you tell them what you’re actually doing to make their lives better?”

Montgomery: ‘This is just plain prejudice’

Montgomery, the Democratic nominee in House District 25, accused Stadthagen of prejudice.

“I don’t know Stadthagen and he doesn’t know me,” Montgomery said. “This is just plain prejudice.”

She said the voters she meets on the campaign trail are focused on education, health care and affordability.

“They brought up my womanhood because they have failed at governing,” Montgomery said. “Ask yourselves: if I hadn’t transitioned, would gas be cheaper? Would your utilities be cheaper? Would groceries be more affordable? Would your medical debt go away? Would your rent stop getting higher?”

Montgomery said her gender rarely comes up when she talks with voters. “When I’m knocking doors and talking with voters, they don’t care that I’m trans, and that’s not what I’m focused on either,” she said.

Candidates point to Easterbrook’s arrest

Both Osborne and Montgomery cited the recent arrest of Republican state Rep. Brett Easterbrook, accusing GOP leaders of targeting transgender candidates while one of their own members faces criminal allegations involving human trafficking of minors.

Easterbrook, a Republican from Fruitdale, was arrested during an undercover operation in Escambia County. He was initially booked on a Class A felony charge of first-degree human trafficking and a misdemeanor prostitution charge. Court documents allege that he agreed to pay $500 for sexual intercourse with an escort he believed to be 18. Under Alabama’s human trafficking law, a minor is defined as anyone younger than 19.

On Oct. 5, District Judge Eric Coale approved a motion by prosecutors to reduce the primary charge to attempted first-degree human trafficking, because the case arose from an undercover police sting and no actual victim was involved. The allegations are accusations only, and Easterbrook is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court. Read our previous coverage of the Easterbrook case.

Osborne asked why Stadthagen had not expressed similar outrage over Easterbrook’s arrest. She said her gender has no bearing on her ability to represent Baldwin County.

“I am a longtime Baldwin County resident, a geologist, a parent, a woman, and a candidate for the Alabama House of Representatives,” Osborne said. “None of those facts disqualifies me from serving my neighbors.”

“The people of Baldwin County deserve serious leadership, not another election built around culture wars and fake fear mongering outrage,” she added.

The bigger picture

The exchange highlights how issues of gender identity have become part of the debate in several Alabama legislative races this fall. Republican leaders, including Stadthagen, have made positions on transgender issues and women’s sports a recurring theme at campaign events, including his remarks at President Donald Trump’s recent rally in Mobile. Read our coverage of that rally.

Democratic candidates, meanwhile, have sought to keep the focus on household costs, health care access and public education. Republicans hold large majorities in both chambers of the Alabama Legislature, making contested House races a key test for both parties.

Voters in House District 96 in Baldwin County and House District 25 in Madison County will decide those races in the general election on Tuesday, Nov. 3. South Alabama News will continue to cover the candidates and the issues ahead of Election Day.