2018’s Most & Least Politically Engaged States
2:58 AMPosted by: Adam McCann
Civic participation is a key ingredient of a well-functioning democracy, and voter turnout is one measure of the public’s trust in government. But there’s evidence to suggest a growing lack of political engagement among Americans.
Presidential elections tend to get citizens more energized than midterms. In 2016, a record 137.5 million Americans voted. Unfortunately, that number still only accounts for 61.4% of the voting-age population. The numbers are much worse for midterms. In 2014, for instance, 15 of the first 25 statewide primary elections reported record-low voter turnouts. Nationwide, only 36.4% of all eligible voters voted.
Among developed nations, the U.S. is rank 26 of 32 when it comes to voter turnout. That’s no surprise, considering most states don’t emphasize civic education in their schools. Large proportions of the public fail even simple knowledge tests such as knowing whether one’s state requires identification in order to vote.
But of the factors that affect participation rates, income is an important one, with implications on both voter turnout and public policy. In the 2016 election, only 41.4% of registered voters with family incomes of under $10,000 voted. In comparison, 80.3% of those with family incomes of $150,000 or more voted.
With Election Day close at hand, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on ten key indicators of political engagement. They range from “percentage of registered voters in the 2016 presidential election” to “total political contributions per adult population.” Continue reading below for our findings, additional insight from political experts and a full description of our methodology.
- Main Findings
- Correlation Analysis
- Blue vs. Red States
- % of Citizen Voters by Age Group
- Ask the Experts
- Methodology
Most Politically Engaged States
|
Overall Rank |
State |
Total Score |
Overall Rank |
State |
Total Score |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 79.19 | 27 | Louisiana | 43.31 | |
| 2 | Maine | 69.26 | 28 | Arkansas | 42.99 | |
| 3 | Utah | 61.47 | 29 | Rhode Island | 41.06 | |
| 4 | Maryland | 59.56 | 30 | Ohio | 40.53 | |
| 5 | Washington | 58.60 | 31 | Kansas | 39.98 | |
| 6 | Wyoming | 58.26 | 32 | Pennsylvania | 39.36 | |
| 7 | Colorado | 58.22 | 33 | Iowa | 39.14 | |
| 8 | Montana | 55.70 | 34 | Idaho | 38.41 | |
| 9 | Virginia | 55.48 | 35 | New Jersey | 37.61 | |
| 10 | Wisconsin | 54.86 | 36 | Delaware | 37.39 | |
| 11 | Massachusetts | 54.19 | 37 | Michigan | 36.08 | |
| 12 | Oregon | 51.73 | 38 | Georgia | 35.41 | |
| 13 | Nebraska | 51.01 | 39 | Oklahoma | 34.62 | |
| 14 | Minnesota | 50.96 | 40 | South Carolina | 34.57 | |
| 15 | Missouri | 50.22 | 41 | Texas | 34.51 | |
| 16 | New Hampshire | 49.69 | 42 | South Dakota | 34.37 | |
| 17 | Alaska | 49.65 | 43 | Kentucky | 34.28 | |
| 18 | Illinois | 48.36 | 44 | New York | 33.30 | |
| 19 | North Carolina | 47.50 | 45 | West Virginia | 32.57 | |
| 20 | North Dakota | 47.10 | 46 | Mississippi | 32.20 | |
| 21 | Vermont | 45.93 | 47 | Tennessee | 31.26 | |
| 22 | Connecticut | 45.86 | 48 | Indiana | 31.25 | |
| 23 | Florida | 45.50 | 49 | Alabama | 30.56 | |
| 24 | California | 44.86 | 50 | Hawaii | 23.08 | |
| 25 | Nevada | 44.42 | 51 | New Mexico | 21.88 | |
| 26 | Arizona | 44.09 |
Embed on your website<iframe src="//d2e70e9yced57e.cloudfront.net/wallethub/embed/7782/political-engagement-bubblechart3.html" width="700" height="450" frameBorder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe> <div style="width:700px;font-size:12px;color:#888;">Source: <a href="https://ift.tt/2AhUtyf>
Blue vs. Red States
% of Citizen Voters by Age Group
|
State |
‘Political Engagement Among Young People (Aged 18 to 24)’ (Rank) |
‘Political Engagement Among the Elderly (Aged 65+)’ (Rank) |
|---|---|---|
| Virginia | 60.70% (1) | 72.60% (26) |
| Minnesota | 54.70% (2) | 72.60% (26) |
| Maryland | 54.30% (3) | 68.10% (36) |
| Kentucky | 53.90% (4) | 60.20% (47) |
| Nebraska | 52.90% (5) | 79.50% (3) |
| Pennsylvania | 51.40% (6) | 64.80% (41) |
| North Carolina | 50.70% (7) | 74.70% (13) |
| Louisiana | 49.80% (8) | 70.20% (32) |
| Maine | 49.40% (9) | 82.00% (1) |
| Colorado | 49.00% (10) | 81.10% (2) |
| Oregon | 48.80% (11) | 74.70% (13) |
| Missouri | 48.00% (12) | 75.80% (11) |
| Wisconsin | 47.10% (13) | 77.90% (6) |
| Illinois | 46.80% (14) | 73.20% (23) |
| Mississippi | 46.70% (15) | 77.70% (7) |
| Washington | 45.90% (16) | 77.60% (8) |
| Idaho | 44.30% (17) | 74.70% (13) |
| South Carolina | 43.90% (18) | 73.10% (25) |
| Utah | 43.60% (19) | 76.60% (10) |
| Georgia | 43.50% (20) | 72.40% (28) |
| Connecticut | 43.30% (21) | 73.60% (22) |
| Indiana | 43.00% (22) | 67.70% (38) |
| Nevada | 42.90% (23) | 74.00% (19) |
| Massachusetts | 42.80% (24) | 74.30% (18) |
| California | 42.70% (25) | 69.20% (34) |
| Alabama | 42.70% (25) | 66.90% (40) |
| New Mexico | 40.90% (27) | 74.70% (13) |
| New Jersey | 40.70% (28) | 68.00% (37) |
| Arizona | 40.20% (29) | 72.20% (29) |
| Ohio | 40.10% (30) | 74.00% (19) |
| New York | 38.20% (31) | 64.50% (42) |
| Michigan | 37.80% (32) | 74.40% (17) |
| Iowa | 37.60% (33) | 78.00% (5) |
| Florida | 37.30% (34) | 69.80% (33) |
| Kansas | 35.80% (35) | 75.20% (12) |
| Arkansas | 34.50% (36) | 67.30% (39) |
| Oklahoma | 33.70% (37) | 70.70% (30) |
| West Virginia | 32.50% (38) | 63.30% (45) |
| Texas | 31.90% (39) | 69.00% (35) |
| Tennessee | 31.10% (40) | 64.20% (44) |
| Hawaii | 21.70% (41) | 60.30% (46) |
| Montana | N/A (N/A) | 78.10% (4) |
| Vermont | N/A (N/A) | 77.10% (9) |
| South Dakota | N/A (N/A) | 73.90% (21) |
| New Hampshire | N/A (N/A) | 73.20% (23) |
| Delaware | N/A (N/A) | 70.50% (31) |
| Rhode Island | N/A (N/A) | 64.40% (43) |
| Alaska | N/A (N/A) | N/A (N/A) |
| District of Columbia | N/A (N/A) | N/A (N/A) |
| North Dakota | N/A (N/A) | N/A (N/A) |
| Wyoming | N/A (N/A) | N/A (N/A) |
Note: For the states with N/A, the base was less than 75,000 and therefore too small to show the derived measure.
Ask the Experts
Given the eroding political engagement in the U.S., we asked a panel of experts to share their insight on the voter-turnout disparities among states and advice for local governments on improving civic participation. Click on the experts’ profiles to read their bios and responses to the following key questions:
- Which states do you think will have a particularly high turnout this election year?
- Why are some states more politically engaged than others?
- What are effective local strategies for increasing political engagement?
- Do Super PACs (Political Action Committees) add value to the political process? Should they be more heavily regulated?
- Should corporations be able to make political contributions?
- Should personal contributions to campaigns be tax-deductible?
Matthew Wilson Ph.D. – Associate Professor of Political Science, Southern Methodist University
Christine Williams Ph.D. – Professor of Political Science, Bentley University
Herbert Weisberg Ph.D. – Emeritus Professor of Political Science, Ohio State University
David Schultz Ph.D. – Professor of Political Science, Hamline University
Aaron Weinstein Visiting Professor of Politics, Fairfield University
Patrick Hickey Ph.D. – Associate Professor of Political Science, West Virginia University
Matthew Wilson Ph.D. – Associate Professor of Political Science, Southern Methodist University
Christine Williams Ph.D. – Professor of Political Science, Bentley University
Herbert Weisberg Ph.D. – Emeritus Professor of Political Science, Ohio State University
David Schultz Ph.D. – Professor of Political Science, Hamline University
Aaron Weinstein Visiting Professor of Politics, Fairfield University
Patrick Hickey Ph.D. – Associate Professor of Political Science, West Virginia UniversityIn order to determine the most and least politically engaged states, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across ten key metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with 100 representing the most political engagement.
We assigned the heaviest weights to two of the metrics — the percentage of the electorate who actually voted in the 2014 midterm elections and the percentage who actually voted in the 2016 elections — because these tend to be the strongest indicators of civic participation. For metrics marked with an asterisk (*), we calculated the population size using the square root of the population in order to avoid overcompensating for minor differences across states.
Finally, we determined each state and the District’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.
- Percentage of Registered Voters in the 2016 Presidential Election: Full Weight (~9.09 Points)
- Percentage of Electorate Who Actually Voted in the 2014 Midterm Elections: Full Weight (~9.09 Points)
- Percentage of Electorate Who Actually Voted in the 2016 Presidential Election: Double Weight (~18.18 Points)
- Change in Percentage of Electorate Who Actually Voted in the 2016 Elections Compared with the 2012 Elections: Double Weight (~18.18 Points)
- Total Political Contributions per Adult Population: Double Weight (~18.18 Points)
- Civic Education Engagement: Half Weight (~4.55 Points)
- Voter Accessibility Policies: Half Weight (~4.55 Points)
- Preregistration for Young Voters Policies: Full Weight (~9.09 Points)
- Volunteer Political Campaign Opportunities per Capita*: Half Weight (~4.55 Points)
- Percentage of Residents Who Participate in Civic Groups or Organizations: Half Weight (~4.55 Points)
Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected from the U.S. Census Bureau, Center for Responsive Politics, Ballotpedia, Corporation for National and Community Service, National Conference of State Legislatures, Center for American Progress and Indeed.
Image: Barbara Kalbfleisch / Shutterstock.com
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