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

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

Correlation Analysis

Education Ranking

GDP per Capita Ranking

Tax Fairness Ranking

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?

Methodology

In 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. 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)



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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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