Kansas pastor Adam Hamilton goes viral after saying politicians shouldn’t ‘pick on’ trans people
Kansas Democratic Senate candidate Adam Hamilton (Getty Images)
A Kansas megachurch pastor running for the US Senate has told politicians to stop “bully[ing]” transgender people and turning them into a campaign issue.
Democratic candidate Adam Hamilton made the comments in a KMBC interview when he was asked: “Where do you come down on transgender rights?”
Hamilton replied: “I don’t understand everything there is to know about transgender people. What I can say is this: I don’t think we should take a small group of people and bully them, pick on them, and hurt them.”
He framed his answer through faith, saying: “I look at people, and I understand one thing really clearly when it comes to transgender, and that is Jesus told me I was to love my neighbor as I love myself. So I’m gonna love the trans person as well as the straight person, as well as the male or female.”
Hamilton also argued that trans people have been cynically weaponised in electoral politics. “I just think we have to do better than picking on small groups,” he said. “And what’s happened is we’ve turned a group of people into a campaign issue because it polls well.”
Why Adam Hamilton’s trans rights answer is spreading
In recent days, Hamilton’s KMBC answer has been widely shared online. The Human Rights Campaign’s rapid response account reposted the clip in an X post, writing: “It’s that simple. Thank you.”
Hamilton is challenging Republican incumbent senator Roger Marshall in Kansas.
Hamilton opposes allowing males to compete in female sports.
How trans rights are shaping the Kansas Senate race
Hamilton’s opponent has pushed federal policy in the other direction. Marshall filed legislation in 2024 to “codify legal definitions of male, female, and sex to ensure they are based on biology rather than ideology.”
Hamilton has also drawn national attention because of his profile as a prominent United Methodist pastor and author. He is associated with the Church of the Resurrection in the Kansas City area, one of the largest United Methodist congregations in the US.
In September, JD Vance attacked Hamilton and his church after it was among dozens of sponsors of Kansas City PrideFest. Hamilton’s campaign response at the time cited the church’s 2025 work, including feeding more than 45,000 people and distributing nearly 60,000 children’s books.
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