Mental Health Changes Among LGBTQIA+ Persons After the 2024 US Presidential Election.

Objectives. To determine whether mental health has changed among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, and other sexual or gender minority (LGBTQIA+) people in the United States since the November 2024 election. Methods. This longitudinal observational cohort study of LGBTQIA+ people in the United States (n = 2150) examined changes in mental health symptoms (depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder) from before (June 2023-May 2024) to after (November 2024-July 2025) the November 2024 election using fixed-effects models. Results. Individuals without clinically significant symptoms before the election evidenced worsening in these symptoms after the election, whereas those who screened positive before the election saw an improvement in these symptoms or conditions after the election (though still reflecting mean scores consistent with clinically significant symptoms). Transgender and gender-diverse people without clinically significant symptoms before the election experienced a greater worsening of anxiety and posttraumatic stress symptoms compared with cisgender people. Conclusions. Mental health symptoms have worsened since the November 2024 election among LGBTQIA+ people in the United States who did not have prior clinically significant symptoms. Public Health Implications. Health care providers and systems should be prepared to check on the mental health of LGBTQIA+ people who did not previously have mental health concerns. (Am J Public Health. 2026;116(11):1786-1789. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2026.308631).