Kentucky Is the Gayest State in America

Kentucky is the gayest state in America by percentage of the population, according to new research by the University of California, Los Angeles.

According to new data released by the UCLA's Williams Institute, 5.6 percent of Americans identify as LGBT, with a rough of about 14 million people. The majority live in the South, with 5.2 million, or 36.9 percent, of America's queer population living in places like Kentucky.

Respondents to the survey were asked: "Which of the following best represents how you think of yourself?" with response options: "Gay or lesbian; Straight, that is, not gay; Bisexual; Something else; I don't know the answer." They could also refuse to answer the question.

For measuring the number of transgender people: "Do you consider yourself to be transgender?" with response options being: "Yes; No; Don't know/not sure" or likewise, respondents could refuse to answer.

The study found Kentucky has the highest percentage of LGBT individuals per state, with 10.5 percent of the adult population identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual and/or transgender. However, pinching the overall top spot from Kentucky is the District of Columbia. While not technically a state, it has the highest percentage of LGBT people at 14.3.

Oregon, Delaware and Vermont had percentages ranging between 7.4 and 7.8 percent of people identifying as either gay or trans.

By the same measurement, West Virginia and Mississippi have the lowest percentage of LBGT adults, with 4.1 percent of people in each state identifying that way. Other states with lower percentages include North Carolina (4.4 percent), Iowa (4.7 percent), Illinois (4.5 percent) and Alabama (4.6 percent).

The state with the highest number of LGBT adults in total is California, with 1.46 million, according to UCLA. In second place is Texas, with 1.07 million gay or trans people out of a population of roughly 29.3 million. Florida and New York also have high numbers of LGBT individuals with 898,000 and 853,000, respectively.

The state with the lowest gay and/or trans populations measured by head count is Wyoming, with an estimated 26,300 LGBT people. Alaska is the second lowest (32,600), followed by Montana (41,800).

By region, the South is home to the highest percentage of queer people. The West is home to 24.2 percent, or 3.4 million, while the Midwest houses 20.6 percent (2.9 million) and the Northeast 18.3 percent (2.6 million).

Across age groups, younger people have been found to be more likely to identify as LGBT with 15.4 percent of adults aged 18 to 24 compared to 9.2 percent of 25- to 34-year-olds.

Those 65 and over are least likely, with only 1.8 percent of Americans saying they are LGBT, while 2.8 percent of those 50 to 64 and 4.2 percent of those 35 to 49 say they are queer.

Newsweek has reached out to the Williams Institute via email for comment.