Republican House of Delegates candidate Greg Gorham is weighing in on the high school locker room controversy in Loudoun County, where two male students were suspended after reporting that a transgender student had filmed them in the locker room.
Gorham, who is challenging first-term Democrat Del. Joshua Thomas in Virginia’s 21st District, says the case is part of a broader crisis for parental rights and accountability in public education.
“I agree with Attorney General Miyares and support his reelection,” Gorham told the Prince William Reporter. “It is unfortunate the issue must be elevated, but the local administration in Loudoun hasn’t handled it well, and the natural next line of defense for parents is exactly what Miyares is proposing.”
Miyares recently said that Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) has violated Title IX by retaliating against the two students and referred the matter to the U.S. Departments of Education and Justice for further investigation.
“No one should be punished for believing what is taught in biology class,” Miyares said in a press release.
“In the spring, Loudoun County Public Schools weaponized Title IX to punish male students for expressing discomfort at being forced to share a locker room with a female student who was filming them. Following those reports, Governor Youngkin asked my Office to investigate the facts,” he said.
He stated that an investigation revealed serious concerns, including Title IX violations, unlawful retaliation, and viewpoint discrimination.
“All tied back to Loudoun County Public Schools’ habitual misuse of authority and disregard for the law. In June, my Office referred the matter to the U.S.,” Miyares said.
Miyares emphasized that his office is actively monitoring the situation and considering legal action to ensure student rights are protected.
“Let me be clear: We aren’t going to let this go,” Miyares said. “This will not be slid under the carpet. The safety, dignity, and privacy of every student in Virginia should be non-negotiable. What Loudoun did was wrong, but it is never too late to do the right thing. I implore LCPS to do so.”
The incident at Stone Bridge High School has sparked national attention.
According to attorneys at the Founding Freedoms Law Center, a transgender male student, who is biologically female, allegedly filmed inside the boys’ locker room to capture reactions.
When three male students complained, LCPS launched a Title IX investigation and ultimately suspended two of them for sexual harassment and sex-based discrimination.
One of the students has since moved out of the county but is still subject to the suspension if he returns.
The disciplinary actions require 10-day suspensions, corrective action plans, and no-contact orders with the complainant—measures that parents say could harm the students’ academic futures.
Some families have accused the district of prioritizing ideology over student safety and punishing students for asserting their privacy rights.
With the Loudoun case still unfolding and no public response yet from federal agencies, Gorham believes the stakes are only getting higher.
“More parents need to be engaged and get on the school boards to balance these ideologies to reflect accurately how the community feels,” he said. “These issues get a lot of response as I have been talking to voters as I go door to door building voter awareness of my campaign for HD21 delegate.”
Gorham, a longtime resident and retired IT professional, said these developments underscore a dangerous trend in public education.
“At times when I read these stories I have to do a double take, is this another Babylon Bee satire story or is it real,” Gorham said. “Too often it is not satire. I had a similar reaction to a story about my opponent making light of the very serious abortion issue with a satire-like propaganda group ‘Bros for Repro.’ It should be called Bros against reproduction.”
Gorham was referencing Thomas’ inclusion as one of five Virginia lawmakers featured in Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia’s “Bros for Repro” campaign, which highlights male allies supporting a constitutional amendment to maintain pro-abortion legislation in the state.
Notably, a separate investigation has been launched at Centerville High School in Fairfax County, after allegations that staff at Fairfax County Public Schools secretly arranged and funded abortions for students without informing their parents.
One 17-year-old was reportedly assisted by a school social worker who scheduled and paid for the procedure, while another student, five months pregnant, claimed she was pressured into an abortion but fled before it occurred.
Gorham said that parents should be at the center of decisions about what happens in schools, and that their rights are being routinely sidelined.
Attorneys for the students punished in the Loudoun incident have also alleged religious discrimination, claiming that the only student cleared in the investigation is Muslim, while the two suspended students are Christian.
“By making an example out of these boys and punishing them for complaining about a girl being in their locker room, LCPS shows its defiance of the US Department of Education’s Title IX compliance demands. As we explore all of our legal options, we strongly urge the US Department of Justice to bring action to correct this wrong,” attorney Josh Hetzler, who echoed Miyares’ call for federal intervention, said, according to Loudoun Now.
Gorham’s campaign has centered on empowering parents and communities. He frequently promotes a local-first approach to education, inspired by Michigan’s Kalamazoo Promise scholarship model.
“I have been encouraging the establishment of programs that mimic the Kalamazoo Promise in Virginia,” he said. “See VoteGorham.com for details on how these non-government run programs create a vested community supporting the schools.”
He envisions what he calls a “Virginia Promise,” which would build on this concept without relying on taxpayer funding.
“As I explain on my web page VoteGorham.com I think building vested communities around schools and the school boards is essential,” Gorham said. “Engagement starts locally. I can lay out a template for a Virginia Promise in law but that really isn’t necessary. The most attractive feature of a “promise” program is there is there is no government involvement (taxes), it is all privately locally funded and administered. I am open to discussing state level solutions especially where funding is concerned.”
Gorham also supports repealing state mandates that he believes force ideological conformity in schools.
He also referred to guidance issued by Governor Glenn Youngkin that many local districts, including Loudoun, have resisted.
“On my to-do list is repealing DEI training mandates that apparently school boards point to when violating directives from the Governor,” Gorham said.
Gorham is no stranger to local activism.
He previously led a successful campaign to censure GOP Supervisor Pete Candland over data center conflicts of interest.
His platform spans beyond education targeting data center sprawl, tax reform, DEI mandates, healthcare innovation, and even alternative currencies.
He contrasts his deep roots in the district with what he calls Thomas’s “opportunistic” move into the area following 2023 redistricting.
Gorham won the Republican nomination in a three-way primary with more than 66% of the vote and says parental rights remain one of the most consistent concerns he hears on the campaign trail.
