Gay and lesbian couples in Brazil are rushing to marry ahead of the swearing in of President-elect Jair Bolsonaro.

Bolsonaro, who once proclaimed himself to be a “proud homophobe” and campaigned on a pledge to defend “the true meaning of matrimony as a union between man and woman,” will be sworn in on January 1.

(Related: Brazil elects “proud homophobe” Jair Bolsonaro as president.)

Same-sex marriage became legal in Brazil in 2013, but, according to various sources, Bolsonaro's election has led to a surge of weddings among gay couples. Last month, the number of such marriages in Brazil increased 65 percent over the previous year.

“We're going to marry today because we want security,” Lucas Nascimento, a 22-year-old blogger, told NPR. “It's just because this we're going to marry today – more faster than we want because we don't know what's going to happen.”

Clara Correa said that she was marrying her partner first out of love and second because of Bolsonaro.

“We're thinking to leave the country because we were scared. Then I say no. We fought so much. Why don't [we] fight right now and fight with love?” she said.

The New York Times reported on a mass wedding ceremony organized by the city of São Paulo where 30 couples exchanged vows.

“There could be attempts to make same-sex marriage illegal, but the Constitution will prevail,” Jose Fernando Simao, a professor of civil rights and family law at the University of São Paulo, told the Times. “It's natural for there to be concern. This is a community that has been ultra-marginalized in the past.”

Activists also worry that Bolsonaro's fiery rhetoric will embolden opponents of LGBT rights, leading to increasing violence and discrimination against the community.