EXCLUSIVE: Daughters of the American Revolution to Vote on Definition of ‘Woman’ Amid Criticism of Transgender Policy

FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—The Daughters of the American Revolution currently allows men who identify as women to join, but the group will vote on a resolution to reverse that policy and formally define “woman,” the Daily Signal has learned.

“Members of the Daughters of the American Revolution will take an historic vote to define the word ‘woman’ on Friday June 26, 2026, at Memorial Continental Hall in Washington, D.C.,” Laura McDonald, founder and president of Daughters Advocating for Restoration and a member of Daughters of the American Revolution since 2018, told the Daily Signal.

“Daughters all across the country have relentlessly pursued all avenues and have succeeded in their demand for this historic vote,” she added.

The Daughters of the American Revolution Resolution

The resolution, provided to the Daily Signal, argues that the bylaws, which state that eligibility only applies to women, “should be interpreted in accordance with the intention of the society at the time the bylaw was adopted.” There is no question that DAR’s founders in 1890 did not envision men identifying as women as eligible for membership.

In relevant part, the resolution states:

Resolved, That in Article III, Section 1 of the Bylaws, the term ‘woman’ shall be understood to clearly mean a woman who was born female, and therefore, individuals who were born male shall not be eligible for membership; transgender women shall not be eligible for membership; and men who have their birth certificates changed from male to female shall not be eligible for membership.

The DAR bylaws require the organization’s president general to call a special meeting at the request of at least 30 chapters in 10 states. At least 68 chapters in 27 states signed this resolution.

On April 21, DAR Recording Secretary General Colleen Rafferty Joyce signed a letter announcing that the society would vote on the resolution at the Continental Congress, held from June 24 to June 28.

The announcement frames the resolution as “restricting the interpretation of ‘woman’ in the National Bylaws based on sex assigned at birth,” echoing transgender activist language.

Vikki Grieshaber, regent of the Letitia Coxe Shelby chapter in La Mesa, Calif., confirmed to the Daily Signal that her chapter called for the special meeting.

“We requested the Call to a Special Meeting where we will vote on the bylaw amendment,” she said, confirming the date of June 26.

“The Letitia Coxe Shelby Chapter supports a bylaw change,” Grieshaber added. “We believe the term ‘woman’ refers to biological women only.”

“Our founders would never have anticipated men believing they are women would join a women’s only organization,” she explained. “The current membership application has us attest to the fact that we are biological women. We hope to restore our Society to what our founding daughters intended.”

The DAR did not respond to multiple requests for comment from the Daily Signal.

Sons Becoming Daughters?

Organizers of the DAR changed the organization’s bylaws in 2023, barring local chapters of the group from discriminating on the basis of gender, religion, or sexual orientation. The group’s president general said the new policy would require chapters to admit men who claimed to identify as women, so long as they changed their birth certificates. Many members reportedly resigned following the new policy.

A New Jersey chapter had reportedly accepted a transgender member in 2022, inspiring backlash.

The DAR’s transgender move is rather ironic. The women who founded the organization did so after the Sons of the American Revolution refused to admit women.

Recent polls have found Americans souring on transgender identity. A New York Times/Ipsos poll last year found that 79% of Americans say men should be barred from women’s sports. A majority of Americans also support banning experimental transgender medical procedures on children.

McDonald emphasized the importance of the vote and expressed confidence in victory, echoing the closing of the Declaration of Independence.

“We believe restoring and preserving the DAR for future generations is essential to winning the culture war,” she told the Daily Signal. “With a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we believe we will win.”