Washington DC and Hawaii top the list of states ranked by the percentage of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender adults, according to a new study.
Surveys carried out by Gary J. Gates, distinguished scholar at the Williams Institute, and Gallup editor-in-chief Frank Newport found that in Washington 10 percent of respondents identified as LGBT. Hawaii finished second, at 5.1 percent.
North Dakota ranks 51st, with only 1.7 percent of the population identifying as LGBT.
The national average was 3.5 percent, with most states falling with a two-point range up or down from that.
New York State ranked 14th with 3.8 percent saying they are LGBT. New Jersey came in at 18th, with 3.7 percent identifying in that way, and Connecticut was number 25 at 3.4 percent.
Four percent of Californians said they are LGBT, which puts it in 10th place.
Others states in the top 10 are Vermont, Oregon, Maine, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, South Dakota, and Nevada.
More than 206,000 people were surveyed, and 41 of the 51 states and DC had samples of 1,000 or more. Nearly 10,000 New Yorkers were surveyed.
The margin of error varies by state, but in every case is less than plus or minus two percent.
The authors stated that of the 10 states plus DC that registered LGBT percentages of four percent or higher, seven are among the “most liberal” based on other Gallup polling. Six of the bottom ranked 10 are among the “most conservative” states.
Utah, Tennessee, Mississippi, and Montana round out the bottom five in terms of their LGBT population.
The Williams Institute is the UCLA School of Law’s center for Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Law and Public Policy.
