Dominican Electoral Board ‘validates’ trans couple’s marriage

The Dominican Republic’s Central Electoral Board has confirmed the legality of a marriage involving a couple who publicly identify as transgender, relying on the sex classifications recorded in their official documents.

Jayden Resto Holguín, a trans man, and Regina Balaguer de Resto, a trans woman known on social media as “Queen of Crowns,” passed the board’s requirements because their birth certificates and identity documents list them as different sexes.

The board identified the couple in its statement by the names recorded in the Civil Registry. Aris Doris Resto Holguín is publicly known as Jayden Resto Holguín and is registered as female. Miguel José Balaguer de la Rosa is publicly known as Regina Balaguer de Resto and is registered as male.

“The marriage meets the requirements established by the Constitution and Dominican laws, since it was celebrated between a man and a woman, according to their birth certificates and identity documents,” the board said.

The explanation rests on Article 55 of the Dominican Constitution, which says the state will promote and protect the family through marriage between a man and a woman. That provision remains in the Constitution proclaimed in 2024.

For civil marriages, the board requires identity cards and birth certificates. In this case, it used the classifications in those records to determine that the legal requirements had been met. The board said the marriage therefore does not represent a change in the country’s marriage rules or recognition of marriage between people of the same sex.

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The marriage meets the requirements established by the Constitution and Dominican laws, since it was celebrated between a man and a woman, according to their birth certificates and identity documents.