A bill in the Minnesota House that would have banned transgender athletes from elementary and secondary school girls’ sports failed to get the 68 votes needed to pass in a vote early Monday night. All 67 Republicans voted in favor and all 66 DFL members voted against.

The two-hour debate over the bill followed a day of rallies, protests and news conferences about the bill.

At a rally Monday morning on the steps of the State Capitol, supporters of the bill featured an appearance by Riley Gaines, a former all-American collegiate swimmer who is now an outspoken opponent of transgender athletes in women’s sports. 

“How crazy is it that you have to walk down the steps with an entourage of security for saying something as simple as men and women are different. Utterly insane,” she said to cheers from the crowd of about 300 people. “I could spend hours sharing with you the unfairness of what me and my teammates and girls around the country continue to face.”

Republican House Speaker Lisa Demuth hoped at least one Democrat would join Republicans in voting for the bill. “This bill that we will vote on today is about protecting fairness,” Demuth said. “It’s protecting opportunity and safety for girls in sports.”

The proposed bill, called The Preserving Girls Sports Act, would change the current law to ban transgender girls from playing on female sports teams. 

“This bill aims at a fake problem, manufactured to divide us for attempted political gain,” Rep. Jamie Long (DFL-Minneapolis) said on the House floor. 

Long said his own child had a transgender teammate and added there were no issues. 

His DFL colleague, St. Paul representative Leigh Finke — a transgender woman herself — made her pitch for why legislators should not support the bill. 

“This bill is specifically about forcing the erasure of trans people in order to participate,” Finke said during the floor debate, later adding, “I’m just going to make a plea from my side to yours, as the only trans woman in this body, please stop doing this.” 

Still, Republicans held to their arguments. 

“If you vote no on HF 12, you are rendering Title IX meaningless and telling this generation of female athletes they are invisible,” Rep. Peggy Scott (R-Andover) said. 

Albert Lea representative, Rep. Peggy Bennett (R-Albert Lea) shared in support. “House File 12 is about fairness, safety, and preserving girls sports in Minnesota,” Rep. Bennett said. 

Among the supporters rallying support of the bill were former and current female athletes. “I have a daughter, so I’m here fighting for future generations to have the same kind of great opportunities I had,” said Gina Rickert, a former all-American high jumper at Iowa State University.

Several players on the Farmington High School girls’ softball team also attended. “Biologically there’s many different studies done to prove it’s very unfair for us,” team member Peyton Boyd told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS.

Democrats held their own news conference and rallied against the bill. 

“Minnesota has always led the nation in standing up for LGBQT+ neighbors, and Democrats will do it again today,” predicted Rep. Brion Curran, DFL-Vadnais Heights. “We will not allow Republicans to discriminate and bully children for wanting to play.”

Republicans laid the bill back on the table for future consideration. Earlier in the day, Senate Republicans failed in an attempt to pull a similar bill out of committee for a vote on the Senate floor.

RELATED: Feds to investigate MSHSL over policy to follow state law instead of Trump order on trans athletes I College transgender athlete’s victory becomes topic in Minnesota governor race I Court overturns win for transgender Minnesota powerlifter in discrimination case I Ellison: Keeping trans girls from competing in sports would violate Minnesota law I Jenner says transgender girls in women’s sports is ‘unfair’