More LGBTQ+ adults live in Southern US

New data estimate the greatest number of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender U.S. adults live in the South, reaffirming findings from recent years.

Across the country, researchers estimate more than 5% of U.S. adults identify as LGBTQ+, matching prior LGBTQ+ population data. Young people ages 1824 are much more likely to identify as LGBTQ+, according to the report from the Williams Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles.

The report, based off Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, found that in 2020 and 2021, there were nearly 14 million LGBTQ+ adults in the U.S. – with some states having noticeably higher percentages of gay and queer residents than others.

Earlier this year, a different poll from Gallup found a slightly higher percentage of U.S. adults are LGBTQ+. Overall, multiple polls show that the adult LGBTQ+ population has been steadily increasing for years.

“Look at the numbers, more people are coming out younger and people are coming out in places where LGBTQ folks have been less out and visible,” Cathy Renna, a spokesperson for the National LGBTQ Task Force, told USA TODAY.

Broken down by state, the report shows Washington, D.C., Oregon and Delaware topping the list for having the greatest percentage of gay and queer residents.

The census – the nation’s most wellknown population survey – does not gather data on Americans’ sexuality or gender identity. In 2021, other, smaller surveys from the bureau began asking those questions of respondents for the first time.

Researchers at the Williams Institute, a leading national LGBTQ+ population data research group, estimate there are more than 13.9 million LGBTQ adults in the U.S., representing 5.5% of the population.

Every year, Gallup also releases results of a poll estimating how many Americans are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender.

Gallup’s last report – which polled a nationally representative group of 10,000 respondents – found 7.2% identified as LGBTQ+.

The new data shows nearly 36% of the nation’s adult LGBTQ+ population lives in the South, representing more than 5 million people. The number is also an uptick from the last data released by the Williams Institute in 2014, showing 35% of the nation’s LGBTQ+ population lived in the South.

Researchers defined the South as states spanning from Texas and Oklahoma, to Florida and north through Delaware. Kentucky, West Virginia and Washington, D.C. are also included in the grouping.

In recent years, Southern Republicanled states have passed more laws restricting transgender health care, access to school sports and instruction on LGBTQ+ history than any other part of the country.

That’s why the South is at the forefront of the national fight for LGBTQ+ rights and equality, Renna says.

“Despite the backlash and despite challenges we’re facing, we’re resilient and we’re not going anywhere,” Renna said.

Speaking from New Orleans, which the National LGBTQ Task Force selected for its next annual conference, Renna said the South is where there’s the most at stake for people’s lives, because it’s home to the most people living under the most oppressive laws.

“This is where a lot of the work really needs to happen,” she said, adding that her organization chose to host its conference in Louisiana because “there are so many LGBTQ people here that are underrepresented in media, culture and, frankly, in the movement.”

Researchers found around 5.7% of Louisiana’s adult population is LGBTQ+, ranking slightly higher than such states as New York, California and Illinois.

In 2021, another LGBTQ+ advocacy group, GLAAD, analyzed Southern media coverage of LGBTQ+ communities and found that dozens of outlets published few or zero substantive stories on LGBTQ+ issues, including HIV/AIDS, during the 18-month period ending in December 2020.

Generation Z, the youngest American generation to include adults, has a much higher percentage of LGBTQ members than older generations.

Researchers found that in 2020 and 2021, 15.2% of Gen Z identified as LGBTQ+, representing more than 4.6 million people. Earlier this year, Gallup found 19.7% of Gen Z – or nearly 1 in 5 – indentified as LGBTQ+ in 2022.

“It’s certainly not uncommon for younger people to say they’re lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or however else they would identify themselves,” said Jeff Jones, a researcher at Gallup who has been tracking LGBTQ population data since 2012.

With each passing year, as more Gen Zers enter adulthood, the cohort’s LGBTQ+ members also push the entire adult national total higher, Jones said.

“As more come into adulthood, replacing the older people, the overall number should go up,” he said.

Researchers have long found that bisexual people – people who are attracted to more than one gender – make up more than half of America’s LGBTQ+ population.

Researchers at the Williams Institute did not break down data based on sexuality, instead focusing on state-by-state LGBTQ populations.

The most recent data from Gallup found more than 58% of all adult LGBTQ+ people in the U.S. are bisexual.

Researchers in 2019 found that compared to gays and lesbians, bisexuals are far less likely to be out about their sexuality with people they’re close to. Some public health professors who study sexuality say biphobia could be playing a role.

Here are the states with the most LGBTQ+ residents and the percentage of adults who identify that way: Washington, D.C.: 14.3%

Oregon: 7.8%

Delaware: 7.5%

Vermont: 7.4%

New Hampshire: 7.2%

Washington: 6.9%

Colorado: 6.8%

Maine: 6.8%

Nevada: 6.6%

Massachusetts: 6.5%

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