Why Indiana's government is No. 1 in a new ranking of states

Indiana's government is the best in the nation, according to a new U.S. News & World Report list of "Best States."

The survey ranked the 50 states in seven key categories. Massachusetts' No. 2 ranking in health care and No. 1 ranking in education were key reasons why it's at the top of the list. Indiana ranked No. 22, just behind Delaware and Rhode Island.

Indiana didn't do as well in health care (41) and education (27), but two areas where Hoosiers shone, according to the web-based media company, were in government (No. 1) and opportunity (No. 4).

Indiana's excellent credit rating, low pension fund liability, budget transparency, use of digital technology and overall fiscal stability were key to its success in the government category. The opportunity category included areas such as economic opportunity, equality and affordability.

Indiana also ranked No. 33 in the category of crime and corrections, No. 26 for its economy and No. 20 for infrastructure.

The ranking won a shout-out from newly elected Gov. Eric Holcomb.

“Strong leadership over the last 12 years has made our government efficient and our fiscal position healthy and solid,” Holcomb said in a news release. “It’s my goal to continue this success and elevate our position on all fronts to take Indiana to the next level.”

Indianapolis, the state capital, also did quite well in U.S. News & World Report's recent ranking of best places to live — ranking higher than New York, Chicago and Los Angeles.

The individual ranking includes a description of Indiana's demographics and its history, including the origins of the nickname Hoosiers and a description of Hoosier Hysteria, the state's annual love affair with high school basketball.

Of Indiana's 6.6 million residents, the largest number by far live in Indianapolis (population: 850,000) and eight in 10 Indiana residents are non-Hispanic whites. That is about 20 percent higher than the national rate, the survey said. Nearly 10 percent of Hoosiers are black, 7 percent Hispanic of any race, and 2 percent Asian.

It's also one of the more religious states — heavily Christian with more than two-thirds of adults saying they believed in God "with absolute certainty " — and "one of the most strongly Republican states in the Midwest."

The survey also noted the state's heavy reliance on durable goods manufacturing, the growth of its tourism industry and its number of well-known higher-ed institutions, such as the University of Notre Dame, Indiana University and Purdue University.

U.S News said its survey gave more weight to some categories than others — such as health care and education — because of what people who were polled said mattered the most to them.

"Some states shine in health care. Some soar in education. Some excel in both — or in much more.

"The Best States ranking of U.S. states draws on thousands of data points to measure how well states are performing for their citizens," U.S. News said.

For a complete list of the rankings, go here: https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/rankings.

Data for the survey was provided by McKinsey & Company’s Leading States Index.

Call IndyStar digital producer Dwight Adams at (317) 444-6532. Follow him on Twitter: @hdwightadams.