Posted by: Adam McCann

Expressions of American patriotism come in many forms — from setting off fireworks during Fourth of July and buying American-made goods to paying taxes and serving in the armed forces. But some states are better than others at showing their national pride.

So in order to determine where Americans bleed the most red, white and blue, WalletHub compared the states across 13 key indicators of patriotism. Our data set ranges from share of enlisted military population to share of adults who voted in the 2016 presidential election to AmeriCorps volunteers per capita. Read on for our findings, expert commentary and a full description of our methodology.

1. Main Findings
2. Blue States vs. Red States
3. Ask the Experts: Taking Our Patriotic Pulse
4. Methodology

 

Main Findings Embed on your website<iframe src="//d2e70e9yced57e.cloudfront.net/wallethub/embed/13680/patriotic-geochart.html" width="556" height="347" frameBorder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe> <div style="width:556px;font-size:12px;color:#888;">Source: <a href="http://bit.ly/2WZbtkQ>

 

Most Patriotic States in America

Overall Rank (1 = Most Patriotic)	State	Total Score	‘Military Engagement’ Rank	‘Civic Engagement’ Rank
1	New Hampshire	63.08	30	5
2	Wyoming	62.67	10	6
3	Vermont	62.25	40	1
4	Utah	62.12	38	2
5	Idaho	61.62	9	7
6	Wisconsin	59.12	42	4
7	Alaska	58.52	1	21
8	South Carolina	57.68	3	13
9	Missouri	56.90	22	8
10	Minnesota	56.84	46	3
11	North Dakota	54.02	33	9
12	Montana	53.98	20	11
13	Maine	52.37	31	10
14	Virginia	52.36	5	17
15	Colorado	49.00	12	15
16	Arizona	48.97	13	14
17	Washington	47.82	16	16
18	Oregon	47.70	32	12
19	Alabama	47.43	8	26
20	Florida	45.67	19	25
21	North Carolina	45.15	6	30
22	Maryland	44.92	25	20
23	Kentucky	44.83	27	18
24	Arkansas	44.44	24	23
25	Louisiana	43.98	29	19
26	Mississippi	43.23	14	29
27	Nebraska	41.42	26	27
28	Tennessee	40.58	28	28
29	Delaware	40.35	23	31
30	Iowa	39.10	39	24
31	Georgia	37.63	4	46
32	South Dakota	36.89	21	38
33	Kansas	36.54	18	39
34	Massachusetts	35.30	50	22
35	Oklahoma	34.83	7	43
36	Nevada	34.82	17	41
37	Ohio	34.61	34	36
38	Hawaii	34.52	2	50
39	Rhode Island	33.75	43	32
40	Pennsylvania	33.25	45	33
41	Illinois	31.39	41	37
42	Michigan	31.37	44	35
43	New Mexico	30.81	15	47
44	Indiana	30.53	35	40
45	Connecticut	30.37	47	34
46	Texas	28.66	11	49
47	West Virginia	28.39	36	42
48	California	23.92	37	48
49	New York	21.63	49	44
50	New Jersey	21.55	48	45

Blue States vs. Red States

 

Ask the Experts: Taking Our Patriotic Pulse

Patriotism can be a complex subject, depending on who’s involved in the discussion. For insight, we asked a panel of experts to share their thoughts on the following key questions:

1. What are the characteristics of a good patriot?
2. What is the relative influence of economic incentives versus patriotic intentions when deciding whether to join the military? Has this changed over time?
3. Is there a link between socio-economic class and level of patriotism?
4. When evaluating the most patriotic states in America, what are the top five indicators?
5. Has there been a shift in the way younger generations perceive and express their patriotism?
6. Should we be raising our children as global citizens first or as Americans first?
7. What measures should schools and local authorities undertake in order to promote patriotism among citizens?

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• Timothy Kneeland Ph.D. – Professor and Chairperson in History & Political Science, Nazareth College
• Sean Michael Laurent Ph.D. – Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Illinois
• David Konstan Professor Emeritus of Classics and Comparative Literature, Brown University

Methodology

To determine the most patriotic states, WalletHub compared the 50 states across two key dimensions, “Military Engagement” and “Civic Engagement.”

We evaluated those dimensions using 13 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the highest level of patriotism.

Finally, we determined each city’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.

Military Engagement – Total Points: 25

• Average Military Enlistees per 1,000 Civilian Adults Between 2012 & 2017 (No Prior Service): Triple Weight (~12.50 Points)
• Veterans per 1,000 Civilian Adults: Full Weight (~4.17 Points)
• Active-Duty Military Personnel per 100,000 Civilian Adults: Full Weight (~4.17 Points)
• Share of Civilian Adult Population in Military Reserves: Full Weight (~4.17 Points)

Civic Engagement – Total Points: 75

• Share of Adults Who Voted in 2016 Presidential Election: Triple Weight (~22.50 Points)
• Share of Adults Who Voted in 2016 Primary Elections: Full Weight (~7.50 Points)
• Volunteer Rate: Half Weight (~3.75 Points)
• Volunteer Hours per Resident: Half Weight (~3.75 Points)
• AmeriCorps Volunteers per Capita: Half Weight (~3.75 Points)
• Peace Corps Volunteers per Capita: Half Weight (~3.75 Points)
• Trial- & Grand-Jury Participation per Civilian Adult Population: Full Weight (~7.50 Points)
• Share of Residents Who Participate in Groups or Organizations (Civic Life): Full Weight (~7.50 Points)
• Civics Education Requirement: Double Weight (~15.00 Points)

Videos for News Use:

• YouTube (for web embedding National)
• YouTube (for web embedding New Hampshire)
• Raw files (for editing into clips)

 Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected from the U.S. Census Bureau, Department of Veterans Affairs, Defense Manpower Data Center, Corporation for National & Community Service, Peace Corps, Military OneSource, United States Elections Project, Corporation for National and Community Service, Administrative Office of the United States Courts and Center for American Progress.

Image: MarianVejcik / iStock.com

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