Number of LGBTQ elected officials jumps nearly 200% since 2017, report finds

The number of out LGBTQ people who have won elected office has increased nearly 200% since 2017, according to research published Wednesday and first reported on by NBC News.

The LGBTQ+ Victory Institute, which works to increase queer and transgender representation in public service, found that there were 1,303 out LGBTQ elected officials as of May, a 10% increase from 1,185 officials last year and a 190.8% increase from the 448 out officials in 2017, according to the organization’s latest annual “Out for America” report.

For the first time, there is also at least one out LGBTQ elected official in every state and in Washington, D.C., the report found.

“LGBTQ people are running in historic numbers right now, and we are winning,” Elliot Imse, the executive director of the LGBTQ+ Victory Institute, said.

However, Imse noted that LGBTQ people are still underrepresented in public service. A March Gallup poll found that 7.6% of the U.S. population is LGBTQ, and there are 519,682 elected positions, the Victory Institute report found, meaning the country would need to elect 38,193 more LGBTQ officials to achieve equitable representation.

“The representation gap is so large that we need a moonshot effort to close it, and that is more important than ever right now, given all the attacks in our communities from state legislatures and city councils across the country,” Imse said.

The country has had a wave of state legislation targeting the LGBTQ community, particularly transgender youth, in recent years, with each year surpassing the previous year’s record. As of this June, state lawmakers have introduced 523 such bills — including restrictions on transition-related health care for minors, trans students’ participation in school sports, and how LGBTQ topics can be discussed in schools  — up from a total of 510 in 2023, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.

Though representation of LGBTQ people has increased overall, the report found that the number of out transgender officials had decreased for the first time since 2017, from 50 last year to 47 this year.

Imse said it’s “concerning” that the number of trans elected officials has fallen as both trans elected officials and trans people generally have faced more hostility, though the report didn’t evaluate whether the hostility is causing fewer trans people to run for or remain in office.

Despite the decrease in trans elected officials in the last year, the overall number of out trans, nonbinary, two spirit and gender-nonconforming people serving in elected office has increased 1,633% since 2017, from six to 104.

The number of known out gender-nonconforming, nonbinary or genderqueer elected officials has increased from none in 2017 to 57 in 2024. Just since last year, the number of out nonbinary officials has increased 70%, from 23 to 39, the report found.

For the first time, the report also found that less than half (48.2%) of LGBTQ elected officials identify as gay. The number of officials who identify as pansexual increased 28.6%, as queer 23.1 % and as bisexual 20.7%, while the number of lesbian elected officials increased by 8.3%.

The number of LGBTQ elected officials who are Black, Latino and Asian American and Pacific Islander increased by 17%, compared with a 9.3% increase of white LGBTQ elected officials.

Imse said the sharp increase in elected officials who are nonbinary, for example, shows that voters will support candidates with various identities.

“It’s a very hopeful message to see that even though so many people do not yet understand sexual orientation and gender identity in a detailed way, they are de-emphasizing the importance of that when they choose their elected officials and are much more willing to look for people because of what they stand for.”

Nebraska state Sen. John Fredrickson, pictured here in the state Capitol in Lincoln on Feb. 8, 2023, is the first openly gay man elected to the Nebraska Legislature.Margery A. Beck / AP file

Imse added that the data doesn’t show the effect that LGBTQ officials are having in their communities. He pointed to Nebraska state Sen. John Fredrickson, a Democrat who gave an emotional speech in April against a bill that would’ve barred trans students from using the school facilities that align with their gender identities and restricted their participation on school sports teams.

The bill needed 33 votes to pass out of committee. After Fredrickson’s speech, two of the bill’s Republican co-sponsors abstained from voting, bringing the final tally to 31-15 and effectively killing the bill.

Fredrickson said that, as the first openly gay man elected to the Nebraska Legislature, he never wanted his legacy to be about his identity.

“That said, I happen to have come into office during a time where we are seeing an unprecedented number of anti-LGBTQ+ bills being introduced, and I feel a high level of responsibility to my community to speak truth in these spaces,” Fredrickson said in an email. “I’ll be honest — it hasn’t always been easy, and it has taken a toll on myself and my family. That said, I go to bed every night knowing who I am, knowing my community, and knowing that I stand on the right side of history, and that is an honor.”

Fredrickson encouraged LGBTQ people who are interested in running for office to do so.

“Without being in these rooms, we risk the conversation continuing to be about us, not with us,” he said.

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Jo Yurcaba is a reporter for NBC Out.