According to a recent poll, voters who
prioritize LGBT issues at the ballot box increased significantly in
the last two years.
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the
nation's largest LGBT rights advocate, commissioned Greenberg Quinlan
Rosner Research to conduct the survey. The poll included 1,400
general election voters and has a margin of error of +/- 2.83%.
Voters who prioritize LGBT issues at
the ballot box, referred to as equality voters by HRC, increased from
29% in the 2018 midterm elections to 37% in 2020.
HRC President Alphonso David said that
politicians should take notice of the trend.
“Over the last three elections, the
share of LGBTQ voters and Equality Voters has continued to increase,
solidifying our community and our allies as a key rising constituency
that can make or break a politician’s success,” David
said. “Our issues matter, our votes matter and politicians
around the country have taken notice. This development did not occur
in a single cycle, but rather through sustained efforts by the Human
Rights Campaign to identify and improve turnout amongst these groups.
Now with pro-equality control restored in the White House, the future
of our community and our movement is bright.”
When asked for their most important
reason to support President-elect Joe Biden, 39 percent of
respondents agreed that “Joe Biden will stand up for immigrants,
people of color, LGBTQ people and others targeted by [President
Donald] Trump.” A larger share of respondents (45%) said that Biden
would do a better job with the coronavirus pandemic.
“Among Biden voters, equality issues
rank second as the leading reason to support the president-elect and
are the number one issue motivating voters to oppose Donald Trump,”
HRC wrote in announcing its findings. “At the same time, attacks on
the LGBTQ community had little impact. Anti-LGBTQ operatives launched
aggressive attacks on the transgender community, alleging falsely
that Biden supports gender confirmation surgeries for children. That
issue ranks dead last as a reason to oppose Joe Biden.”
Among equality voters, 79 percent
supported Biden, while only 19 percent supported Trump.
Support for the Equality Act, a federal
LGBT protections bill that Biden has vowed to prioritize, has also
increased. Seventy percent of general election respondents either
strongly or somewhat support the bill, a 5 percent increase in the
last two years.