According to the poll, 7.2% of Americans identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or other than heterosexual doubled (3.5%) in 2012.
More than half of LGBTQ Americans in the poll identified as bisexual, accounting for 4.2% of all U.S. adults.
Another 1.4% of Americans said they identified as gay and 1% said they were lesbian, while 0.6% identified as transgender, according to the poll.
The increase in LGBTQ identification is largely being driven by younger generations. Nearly 20% of Generation Z adults — 19.7% — said they identified as LGBTQ in 2022, while 11.2% of millennials said the same.
The LGBTQ community, particularly transgender individuals, have become a frequent target of legislation in GOP-controlled statehouses across the country.
South Dakota became the sixth state in the nation to ban gender-affirming care for transgender youths earlier this month, while Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ® last year banned the teaching of sexual orientation and gender identity in Kindergarten through third grade classrooms, claiming the topics were “inappropriate.”