Gallup: 9.3% of Americans are LGBT

 

The percent of Americans who identify as LGBT has increased every year Gallup has surveyed US adults about their sexualities and gender identities.

In its most recent annual report, the percent of Americans who identify as LGBT increased by the most it ever has, since Gallup began tracking LGBT identity in 2012.

 

 

A total of 9.3% of US adults identified as LGBT in 2024, according to Gallup.

The polling firm’s results are based on phone surveys with more than 14,000 US adults in 2024.

Gallup asked respondents whether they identify as straight or heterosexual, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or something else.

 

 

 

 

Change over time

 

The percent of US adults who identify as LGBT has nearly tripled since Gallup began tracking LGBT identity in 2012. 

 

 

I created the graphs in this article using flourish, a website that allows users to create compelling visual aids. 

You can view larger versions of the graphs and tables in this article by clicking on them. 

Here are the values used to create the line graph above.

 

In 2012, only 3.5% of US adults identified as LGBT.

By 2024, the proportion of US adults who identify as LGBT rose to 9.3%. 

 

 

 

The wording of Gallup’s LGBT question has changed only slightly over the past 12 years.

From 2012-17, respondents were asked, “Do you, personally, identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender?”

Respondents could answer with a “yes” or “no”.

 

Gallup did not collect data on LGBT identity in the US in 2018 or 2019. 

 

Beginning in 2020, Gallup has asked respondents whether they identify as straight or heterosexual, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or something else.

Respondents can then tell the interviewer which identities they use.

 

 

 

Gallup has estimated the percent of LGBT Americans 11 times.

The largest increase in LGBT identification in the US took place last year.

In 2024, the percent of US adults who identified as LGBT increased by 1.7%, compared to 2023. 

 

The next largest increase was in 2021, when 1.5% more Americans identified as LGBT than did so in 2020.

The third largest increase took place from 2017-2020, when the percent of LGBT US adults grew by 1.1%.

These are the only times when the percent of LGBT US adults increased from the prior estimate by more than 0.5%.

 

 

 

 

Specific Identities

 

Gallup calculated the percent of US adults who identified with specific LGBT identities in 2024.

5.2% are bisexual, 2.0% are gay, 1.4% are lesbian, and 1.3% are transgender.

 

The percent of Americans who identify with each of these identities increased from 2023 to ’24.

Bisexual increased by 0.8%, gay increased by 0.6%, transgender increased by 0.4%, and lesbian increased by 0.2%.

 

Gallup has estimated the percent of US adults who identify with each of these specific identities for the last five years, beginning in 2020.

The order of the identities across US adults has remained consistent in each annual survey.

Bisexual is the most common LGBT identity, followed by gay, lesbian, and transgender, in that order.

 

 

 

This graph shows the percent of US adults who identified with each identity every year, since 2020.

It also shows the total number of US adults who identified as LGBT, since 2020. 

 

I will show additional versions of this graph that allow the smaller figures to be more easily seen. 

 

 

 

This graph displays the lines for specific LGBT identities.

You can see just how much the bisexual line towers over the others.

 

 

 

Finally, let’s zoom in on the identities at the bottom.

As the previous three graphs show, the lines for LGBT, bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender have each increased from where they began in 2020.

 

 

 

Here is the table of values used to create the graphs above.

 

 

A Closer Look

 

Looking closer at the data reveals LGBT Americans are becoming more comfortable disclosing their identities to Gallup over the phone.

In its annual reports, Gallup includes three broad categories of respondents: those who identify as LGBT, those who identify as straight or heterosexual, and those who decline to answer the question.

Examining what is happening to the non-LGBT categories can help us understand the dynamics behind the increase in the number of LGBT Americans.

 

 

Of the respondents who answer the question, Gallup’s figure for “Straight or Heterosexual” refers to anyone who doesn’t identify as LGBT.

This isn’t, strictly speaking, correct.

Transgender isn’t a sexuality, it’s a gender identity.

Transgender people can, and sometimes do, identify as straight.

But to understand Gallup’s data, we need to recognize the polling agency uses “Straight or Heterosexual” to refer to respondents who aren’t LGBT.

 

 

Sometimes, Gallup describes the percent of US adults who are “straight or heterosexual,”  and the percent who decline to answer, to the nearest tenth of a percent.

Sometimes, Gallup rounds these figures to the nearest percent.

 

 

In its most recent report, Gallup said 85.7% of US adults identify as straight or heterosexual, and five percent decline to answer the question.

Since we know these figures, and those who identify as LGBT, should add together to make 100%, we can determine the percent who declined to answer was 5.0%.

 

 

In Gallup’s 2023 report, the polling firm reported 85.6% of US adults identified as straight or heterosexual, and 6.8% declined to answer.

From 2023 to ’24, the percent of US adults who identified as straight or heterosexual increased by 0.1%, which essentially means it remained the same.

More importantly, the percent of US adults who identified as LGBT increased by 1.7%, while the percent who declined to answer fell by 1.8%. 

Therefore, the rise in LGBT identification in 2024 occurred because LGBT people became more comfortable disclosing their identities to Gallup.

 

 

 

We can also examine this trend over the past five years.

The following table rounds values to the nearest percent, both because Gallup doesn’t always provide all of the relevant figures to an additional degree of precision, and because the trend is actually easier to see without the extra decimal place.

We do have the additional degree of precision for 2020 and 2024, so I will use the extra decimal place in my analysis below. 

 

Since 2020, the percent of US adults who are straight or heterosexual has decreased by 1.0%, from 86.7% to 85.7%.

The percent of US adults who decline to answer has decreased by 2.6%, from 7.6% to 5.0%.

Meanwhile, the percent of US adults who are LGBT has increased by 3.7%, from 5.6% to 9.3%.

 

This provides additional evidence that the primary driver of the growth in the number of LGBT Americans is the increasing willingness of LGBT people to disclose their identities to Gallup over the phone.

 

 

If we assume, for the sake of argument, the 5.0% who declined to answer in 2024 are also LGBT, that would imply the percent of US adults who are LGBT could actually be as high as 14.3%.

If this is the case, and LGBT people continue to become more comfortable sharing their identities with Gallup, the percent of US adults who identify as LGBT could continue to grow rapidly in the coming years.

 

 

 

Over the past few years, I have devoted many articles to covering LGBT statistics, including the results of Gallup’s earlier surveys.

“Sexual Orientation in the United States” covered the results of Gallup’s 2022 survey.

I covered the results of Gallup’s 2023 survey in Season 2 of LGBT by the Numbers, which includes seven full-length articles.

If you’ve read this far, and you haven’t already read my earlier work, I imagine you would enjoy it as well.

 

 

Another interesting finding from Gallup’s results is that younger Americans are more likely to be LGBT than older Americans.

In the next article, we’ll examine the percent of each generation that identifies as LGBT, and see how these figures have changed over time.

 

 

Additional Umbrella Terms

 

This article is part of Season 3 of LGBT by the Numbers, a series that examines the prevalence of LGBT identities in the United States and around the world.

Season 3 examines the results of the Gender Census, an annual global survey of people with a gender that isn’t strictly male or female.

I primarily focus on the results from 2015 to 2024, for reasons I explained in previous articles.

 

 

We have already examined how the five most common terms from the 2024 Gender Census performed over the past decade.

Today, we’ll examine the next three most popular identity terms: gender non-conforming, genderqueer, and enby.

The most common terms in the Gender Census, including these three, are umbrella terms that collectively describe many groups of people with more specific identities.

 

 

This graph shows the performance of Gender Census identity terms over the past 10 years. 

It includes the sixth through eleventh most popular terms from the 2024 Gender Census.

 

Note the Y-axis of the graph doesn’t begin at 0.

Many graphs in this series have a suppressed 0, so their lines can be more easily seen.

 

I created the graphs in this series using flourish, a website that allows users to create compelling visual aids.

 

  

 

Gender non-conforming

 

I believe “gender non-conforming” can be an unnecessarily confusing term. 

As a stand-alone phrase, “gender non-conforming” doesn’t signify what someone’s gender is, or to which gender they're not conforming.

Absent further clarifying information, I would presume someone using this phrase means they're gender non-conforming relative to their birth gender.

But that wouldn’t necessarily clarify whether they still identify with their birth gender, identify as nonbinary, or identify as binary transgender.

 

Alternatively, the phrase could indicate someone is non-conforming relative to either binary gender. 

But that doesn’t clarify whether they are non-conforming due to gender identity or expression.

 

 

Nevertheless, gender non-conforming is among the more common terms used by people with a gender outside the binary.  

 

 

Gender non-conforming was added as a checkbox option in 2019, when it received 26.2%.

It steadily increased in popularity, until it peaked at 38.5% in ‘23, before declining to 34.9% in ’24.

Gender non-conforming has a range of 12.3%.

 

Gender non-conforming was the sixth most popular option, in the Gender Census, from 2023-24.

 

 

 

 

Genderqueer

 

Genderqueer refers to someone whose gender identity or expression falls outside the boundaries of what is typically considered male or female. 

 

It’s common for nonbinary people to describe themselves as genderqueer, but some people with a binary gender identify as genderqueer as well.

Someone with a binary gender could refer to themselves as genderqueer if they engage in gender expression in a non-conforming way, like femboys and tomboys do.

 

 

Genderqueer was commonly used by nonbinary youth in online videos in 2015, when I first began to understand my gender.

While genderqueer is less commonly used today, I’m still quite fond of the term.

 

I have discussed genderqueer in several previous articles, including The Big Picture, Gender Identity and Biological Sex, Feedback on the Diagram, and Nonbinary Nomenclature. 

 

 

Genderqueer was chosen by 58.3% of respondents in the 2013 Gender Census. 

That year, genderqueer was the most popular term. 

I discussed genderqueer’s performance in the 2013 pilot survey in an earlier article.

 

Genderqueer never again reached the heights of its debut in the first Gender Census.

 

Genderqueer was chosen by 41.2% of respondents in 2015, and steadily declined until it bottomed out at 25.9% in 2020.

Genderqueer bounced back and steadily rose until it peaked at 35.0% in 2023, before declining to 32.6% in 2024.

From 2015-24, genderqueer has had a range of 15.3%.

 

 

From 2015-17, genderqueer was the second most popular identity term.

From 2023-24, genderqueer was the seventh most popular identity term.

 

 

 

Enby

 

Nonbinary can be shortened to NB. 

Once those letters are pronounced aloud, you get enby.

Enby is generally used as a noun, whereas nonbinary is generally used as an adjective.

 

Enby is a cutesy word, and not all nonbinary people use the term to describe themselves.

Twice as many people identified as nonbinary (60.4%) in the 2024 Gender Census, than identified as an Enby (29.4%).

 

 

It’s also worth bearing in mind that Enby might not be an appropriate word to use in all settings, even for those that identify with the term.

I would enjoy being called an enby by a romantic partner or close friend.

I’m glad we have a term for nonbinary people that conveys warmth and playful intimacy.

But it could seem strange in a work or professional setting, depending on the level of formality promoted in the workplace. 

 

 

Enby first appeared as a checkbox in 2016, when it received 15.6%.

Enby peaked in 2021, when it received 37.0%.

Enby received 29.4% in 2024.

Enby has a range of 21.4%.

 

Enby was the eighth most popular identity term, in the Gender Census, from 2023-24.

 

 

Enby has the largest range of any of the checkbox identities in the Gender Census, since 2015.

Over the past 10 years, the rise and partial fall of enby has been the largest change among the results for identity terms in the Gender Census.

 

 

 

That’s not the only reason enby’s historical performance has been notable.

Enby is one of only two terms initially chosen by fewer than 20% of respondents, as a checkbox, that was able to subsequently cross that threshold.

The other is transmasculine, which we will discuss in the next article. 

 

I use 20% as my benchmark for notability. 

Therefore, enby and transmasculine are the only identity terms in the Gender Census that have risen from relative obscurity to become relatively common. 

Since 2015, no term that received more than 20% in the Gender Census has subsequently fallen below that threshold.

Which means no term that was relatively common has fallen into relative obscurity, over the past 10 years.

 

 

 

At its peak in 2021, enby was the third most popular identity term.

This can be seen in the graph below, which begins to push the limit of how many lines can be clearly shown on a single graph.

This graph shows the performance of the eight most popular terms from the 2024 Gender Census over the past decade. 

 

 

I discussed gender non-conforming, genderqueer, and enby in “Nonbinary Nomenclature,” which explored the results of the 2023 Gender Census.

 

 

In the next article, we’ll examine transmasculine and transfeminine, as we continue our tour of nonbinary identities from the Gender Census.

 

 

Democratic Victory Fund

 

I think it’s fair to say 2025 is off to a rough start.

Between the human toll of the California wildfires, and the constant outrageous behavior of the Trump administration, it can be easy to despair.

But if you have money to spare, there are ways you can make a difference.

 

 

Wildfire Relief

 

Pod Save America is raising money for local charities to help people harmed by the California Wildfires. 

 

Donations will be split between six organizations.

·        Latino Community Foundation

·        Los Angeles Regional Food Bank

·        Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation

·        United Way of Greater Los Angeles

·        California Community Foundation Wildfire Relief Fund

·        Inclusive Action for the City

 

Here is where you can donate to help support those impacted by the California Wildfires.   

 

 

 

An Endless Series of Outrages

 

The first few weeks of Donald Trump’s second term have featured a whirlwind of outrageous, chaotic, and horrible decisions.

Trump has begun the process of withdrawing the US from the Paris Climate Accord, attempted to withdraw the US from the World Health Organization, chosen to deny transgender and nonbinary Americans accurate federal identity documents, attempted to freeze huge swaths of federal government spending, and separately frozen foreign aid spending.

I discussed those five stories in a previous blog post, but this is only a partial list of the many horrible things Trump has done in his first few weeks as president.

 

 

Many people are despondent by this constant drumbeat of unacceptable behavior.

They are looking for a way to “do something” in response to these provocations, even if they don’t know exactly what they can or should do.

 

If you’re looking for a way to push back against Trump and his Republican enablers, one simple way is to donate to Democrats running in important elections in 2025 and 2026.

 

 

The Democratic Victory Fund splits donations between 10 Democratic candidates, who will be running in competitive races.

I created the Democratic Victory Fund through ActBlue, an organization that processes donations for Democratic candidates. 

 

 

You must be at least 18 years old, and either a US citizen, or lawful permanent resident, to contribute.

 

 

In this article, I will discuss these 10 Democrats, and their upcoming elections.

We’ll begin with Susan Crawford and Abigail Spanberger, who are campaigning in elections that will be held this year.

 

 

 

Wisconsin Supreme Court

 

An April election in Wisconsin will determine ideological control of its state Supreme Court.

Justice Ann Walsh Bradley is retiring, and two candidates are running to replace her.

 

While the race is technically non-partisan, Susan Crawford is aligned with the Democratic Party, and Brad Schimel is aligned with the Republican Party.

Bradley has endorsed Crawford in the race.

PBS Wisconsin and the Associated Press have both published good articles about the Wisconsin Supreme Court race.

 

 

In 2023, the election of Janet Protasiewicz flipped the Wisconsin Supreme Court from conservative to liberal control.

Protasiewicz won the April 2023 election by 11.0%.

Protasiewicz received 55.5% of the vote, and her conservative opponent, Dan Kelly, received 44.5%.

I donated $20 to support Protasiewicz in 2023.

 

Gerrymandering and abortion were key issues in the 2023 election, and they remain important issues for the court.

If Crawford wins, liberals will maintain their majority.

If Schimel wins, conservatives will regain majority control.

 

 

Wisconsin is a perennial swing state.

In each of the three most recent presidential elections, Wisconsin was decided by less than 1%.

Wisconsin also voted for the winner each time Trump has been on the ballot.

In 2024, Trump won Wisconsin by 0.86%.

In 2020, Biden won Wisconsin by 0.63%.

In 2016, Trump won Wisconsin by 0.77%.

 

 

The Wisconsin Supreme Court election will take place April 1.

 

 

 

Virginia Governor

 

Abigail Spanberger is campaigning to be Virginia’s next governor.

As far as I can tell, she is the only Democrat running for the position.

Spanberger previously represented Virginia-7, a competitive district, in the US House.

Spanberger was first elected to the US House in 2018.

She chose not to run for reelection in 2024, so she could run for governor in 2025, instead.

 

 

In 2021, Glenn Youngkin (R) defeated Terry McAuliffe (D) in the Virginia Governor’s race by 1.9%.

Youngkin (R) received 50.6%, McAuliffe (D) received 48.6%, and all other candidates received 0.8%.

 

Under the Virginia Constitution, governors are ineligible to run for consecutive terms.

Therefore, this year’s Virginia Governor’s race will be for an open seat.

 

 

In the three most recent presidential elections, Virginia has voted Democratic.

In 2024, Harris won Virginia by 5.8%.

In 2020, Biden won Virginia by 10.1%.

In 2016, Clinton won Virginia by 5.3%.

 

 

Primary elections for the Virginia Governor’s race will be held June 17.

The general election will take place Nov. 4.

 

 

 

Georgia Senate

 

The Democratic Victory Fund includes one US Senator, Jon Ossoff.

 

Sen. Jon Ossoff will run for reelection in Georgia in 2026.

Ossoff and Raphael Warnock were both elected to the US Senate from Georgia in Jan. 2021, after winning runoffs in their respective races.

Their victories brought the number of Democrats in the Senate to 50, allowing Vice President Kamala Harris to break the tie and give Democrats majority control of the chamber.

 

Ossoff (D) won his Senate runoff on Jan. 5, 2021, against David Perdue (R) by 1.2%.

Ossoff (D) received 50.6%, and Perdue (R) received 49.4%.

I donated $34.08 to Ossoff during his 2020 campaign.

 

 

The day after the Georgia runoffs, Jan. 6, 2021, Donald Trump incited a mob to attack Congress to prevent Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s victory over Trump in the 2020 presidential election.

After the mob was dispersed, Congress reconvened and certified Biden’s election.

 

Four years later, in 2024, voters decided to reelect Donald Trump president, because ending America’s longstanding practice of peacefully transferring power wasn’t disqualifying in the eyes of US voters.

 

 

Georgia has been a swing state during presidential elections in the Trump era.

Georgia voted for the winner of the presidential race in each election where Trump was on the ballot.

In 2024, Trump won Georgia by 2.2%.

In 2020, Biden won Georgia by 0.23%.

In 2016, Trump won Georgia by 5.1%.

 

Georgia has become competitive thanks in part to the efforts of Stacey Abrams and other Democratic activists.

 

 

 

Arizona Governor

 

The Democratic Victory Fund includes three governors eligible to run for reelection in 2026: Katie Hobbs, Tina Kotek, and Tony Evers.

 

 

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs is eligible to run for a second term in 2026.

 

Hobbs was elected Arizona Governor in 2022.

She won her election by 0.67%, or 17,117 votes.

Hobbs narrowly beat conspiracy theorist Kari Lake, who is a passionate promoter of the big lie that Donald Trump actually won the 2020 presidential election, but the election was stolen from him.

Hobbs (D) received 50.3% of the vote, and Lake (R) received 49.6%.

I discussed the 2022 Arizona Governor’s race in an editorial where I urged Arizonans to vote against Lake.

I donated $20 to Hobbs in 2022.

 

 

Arizona has been a presidential swing state during the Trump era.

Arizona voted for the winner of the presidential race in each election where Trump has been on the ballot.

In 2024, Trump won Arizona by 5.5%.

In 2020, Biden won Arizona by 0.30%.

In 2016, Trump won Arizona by 3.5%.

 

 

 

Oregon Governor

 

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek is eligible to run for a second term in 2026.

 

Kotek was elected Oregon Governor in 2022.

Kotek won her election by 3.4%.

The election was a three way race between Tina Kotek (D), Christine Drazan (R), and Betsy Johnson, an independent candidate.

During the election, Phil Knight, the billionaire co-founder of Nike, made large donations to both the Independent and Republican candidates.

The New York Times wrote a great article about the election, which I highly recommend.

Kotek (D) received 47.0%, Drazan (R) received 43.5%, and Johnson (Ind.) received 8.6%.

The remaining 0.9% went to other candidates.

 

 

Democrats have won the most recent Oregon Governor’s races, but the margin is consistently less than 10%.

In 2018, Kate Brown (D) won by Oregon Governor’s race by 6.4%.

 

A special election was held in 2016 to replace Gov. John Kitzhaber (D), who had resigned.

In 2016, Kate Brown (D) won the Oregon Governor’s race by 7.2%.

 

 

Oregon has voted for the Democratic candidate by more than 10% in each of the last three presidential elections.

In 2024, Harris won Oregon by 14.3%.

In 2020, Biden won Oregon by 16.1%.

In 2016, Clinton won Oregon by 11.0%.

 

 

 

Wisconsin Governor

 

Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers is eligible to run for a third term in 2026.

 

In 2018, Evers was first elected Wisconsin Governor by 1.1%.

Evers narrowly defeated incumbent Gov. Scott Walker (R).

Evers (D) received 49.6%, and Walker (R) received 48.5%.

Other candidates received the remaining 2.0%.

 

In 2022, Evers was reelected Wisconsin Governor by 3.4%.

Evers (D) received 51.1%, and Tim Michels (R) received 47.8%.

 

 

 

House of Representatives

 

The Democratic Victory Fund includes three House Democrats: Marcy Kaptur, Derek Tran, and Adam Gray.

Their seats will be up for reelection in 2026.

 

 

Marcy Kaptur was first elected to the US House in 1982.

 

In 2024, Kaptur was reelected by 0.63%, or 2,382 votes.

Kaptur (D) received 48.3%, Derek Merrin (R) received 47.6%, and Tom Pruss, a Libertarian candidate, received 4.1%.

Kaptur represents Ohio-9.

 

 

Derek Tran and Adam Gray were first elected to the US House in 2024.

 

Derek Tran won his election by 0.21%, or 653 votes.

Tran (D) received 50.1%, and Michelle Steel (R) received 49.9%.

I donated $10 to Tran in 2024.

Tran represents California-45.

 

 

Adam Gray won his election by 0.09%, or 187 votes.

Gray’s race was the closest US House race nationwide in 2024.

Gray (D) received 50.04%, and John Duarte (R) received 49.96%.

Gray represents California-13.

You can learn more about the closest 2024 US House races in an article I wrote last month.

 

 

For the sake of comparison, I will discuss how Ohio and California voted in recent presidential elections, even though this information isn’t particularly relevant to the competitiveness of individual US House districts within these states.

 

Ohio has voted for Trump in each of the three most recent presidential elections.

In 2024, Trump won Ohio by 11.2%.

In 2020, Trump won Ohio by 8.0%.

In 2016, Trump won Ohio by 8.1%.

 

California has voted for the Democratic candidate in the last three presidential elections by more than 20%.

In 2024, Harris won California by 20.2%.

In 2020, Biden won California by 29.2%.

In 2016, Clinton won California by 30.1%.

 

 

 

Kansas Legislature

 

The Democratic Victory Fund includes one Democrat in the Kansas House, Nikki McDonald.

Elections will be held in 2026 for the Kansas House of Representatives, but not for the Kansas Senate.

 

 

In 2024, only one Democrat won a Kansas House race by less than 5%.

Nikki McDonald won by 1.2%, or 148 votes.

McDonald (D) received 50.6%, and Kurtis Ruf (R) received 49.4%.

McDonald represents Dist. 49, located in Johnson County, in the Kansas House.

 

 

Last year, I solicited donations for several Kansas Democrats, including McDonald, to try to break the Republican Supermajority in the Kansas Legislature.

Democrats were unable to break the Republican Supermajority in the Kansas Legislature.

Instead, Republicans expanded their majorities in both chambers.

 

 

Once again, statewide presidential results aren’t particularly relevant when considering the competitiveness of an individual state house district.

But I find these results interesting, nonetheless.

 

In each of the three most recent presidential elections, Kansas has voted for Trump by more than 10%.

In 2024, Trump won Kansas by 16.2%.

In 2020, Trump won Kansas by 14.6%.

In 2016, Trump won Kansas by 20.6%.

 

 

 

Looking ahead

 

I plan to rotate candidates out of the Democratic Victory Fund once their elections are complete, and into the fund once Democrats win primaries in competitive races.

I also plan to cover important elections in 2025 and 2026.

 

 

I’m still working my way through covering the results of the 2024 elections.

I’m also mid-way through Season 3 of LGBT by the Numbers.

I plan to alternate between these ongoing series, and current political stories, including the upcoming 2025 elections.

It will always be a safe bet that any ongoing series will take longer to complete than either you or I would predict.

Especially when political news is as intense and relevant as it has ever been.

 

 

There will be no shortage of interesting things to read on Meticulous Musings in the months ahead.