COLUMBUS, Ohio—Outgoing Gov. John Kasich on Wednesday issued an executive order Wednesday prohibiting discrimination against state workers or job applicants based on gender identity and expression.

The executive order, which comes less than a month before Kasich will leave office, marks a change of heart for the governor.

Shortly after he took office in 2011, Kasich, a Columbus-area Republican, removed “gender identity and expression” from the state’s anti-discrimination policy, set up by Kasich’s Democratic predecessor, Ted Strickland, in 2007. The policy also forbids state discrimination based on race, religion, gender, age, or sexual orientation, among others.

At the time, a Kasich spokesman said that the governor felt excluding gender identity from the anti-discrimination policy was “the way that he feels is most appropriate.”

Kasich spokesman Jon Keeling declined to say why the governor changed his mind after seven years. “Upon a recent review of the policy, the governor felt it should better include groups vulnerable to potential discrimination,” Keeling said in a statement.

But Kasich’s decision came after months of lobbying by the advocacy groups Equality Ohio and TransOhio, said Grant Stancliff, Equality Ohio’s communications director.

While there have been no statistics since 2011 on how often transgender state workers face discrimination, Stancliff said his group has heard of several cases anecdotally.

“For transgender people who work for the state, especially around the holidays, I think it’s going to provide a lot of comfort,” Stancliff said.

Equality Ohio Executive Director Alana Jochum said she hoped Gov.-elect Mike DeWine would continue the order when he takes office next month.

However, DeWine spokesman Josh Eck said the governor-elect is still reviewing all executive orders and hasn’t yet decided what he’ll do.

Kasich’s order only applies to employment at state agencies and is not a law. Victims of discrimination can file a complaint with the Ohio Civil Rights Commission or other civil-rights offices, which then investigate the matter. Offenders may be disciplined or fired.