Poll: LGBTQ voters are motivated and strongly favor Harris over Trump

Three-quarters of LGBTQ voters are supporting Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election — and those voters are well-positioned to make their voices heard, with more than 95% of the queer electorate registered to vote in the pivotal November election, according to a new poll released by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation and Community Marketing & Insights.

The research was conducted as part of the 2024 LGBTQ+ Climate Survey, which polled 2,400 LGBTQ Americans Aug. 8-18 to learn about how queer voters are poised to participate in the presidential contest this year. The poll came just weeks after President Joe Biden’s departure from the race and just days after Harris selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate.

According to the poll, the substantial registration numbers within the LGBTQ community are consistent across different age groups. Between 95% and 96% of queer Gen Z, millennials, and Gen X voters are registered, while boomers and the silent generation report the most significant registration numbers among age groups, at 98%.

However, there are key age-related differences when evaluating which groups are more motivated to vote in November. More than nine in 10 boomer/silent generation voters — 91% — say they are “very motivated” to vote, followed by Gen X (87%), millennials (72%), and Gen Z (60%).

The poll also shows that 98% of non-Hispanic Black voters are registered to vote, followed by 97.5% of non-Hispanic white voters. Among others, 91% of Hispanic LGBTQ individuals and 92.6% of individuals categorized under “other race/ethnicity” are registered to vote.

For context, voter registration numbers in the LGBTQ community far outpace the general population: While 96% of all LGBTQ adults are registered, that number drops to 69% among all US adults.

“These findings underscore the power of LGBTQ+ voters,” Shoshana K. Goldberg, director of public education and research at the Human Rights Campaign, said in a written statement. “Virtually all LGBTQ+ Americans are registered and motivated to vote in this election. The LGBTQ+ community is diverse, with a wide range of issues, from the economy to civil rights to democracy, that bring the community to the polls. Without a doubt, LGBTQ+ voters will continue to use the ballot box to fight for our right to live and thrive free from discrimination in this election and beyond.”

Queer Americans are overwhelmingly siding with the Harris campaign in this year’s election, with 74% of LGBTQ people planning to or leaning towards voting for the Harris-Walz ticket. Harris draws even more support from LGBTQ voters planning to vote in the election, with 77% leaning towards her quest for the White House and 8% favoring former President Donald Trump and his vice presidential nominee, Senator JD Vance of Ohio. 

Harris’s lopsided support can partly be explained by the glaring differences between the candidates in their approaches to LGBTQ rights. Trump aggressively targeted LGBTQ rights as president and has railed against transgender individuals throughout this campaign, while Harris has vowed to support the community and has the endorsement of the Human Rights Campaign. 

A majority of survey respondents — 52% — ranked “LGBTQ equality/anti-LGBTQ laws” as the top policy issue motivating them to vote, followed by abortion/reproductive rights (47%), SCOTUS judges/judicial reform (33%), inflation/cost of living (31%), and Project 2025 (27%).

A poll conducted in January and released by GLAAD earlier this year found that 68% of LGBTQ registered voters were likely to vote for Biden, while 15% supported Trump. GLAAD’s post-election poll following the 2020 presidential contest found that 81% of LGBTQ voters voted for Biden and 14% voted for Trump.