• Home
  • Opinion
  • Quizzes
  • Redistricting
  • Sections
  • About Us
  • Voting
  • Events
  • Civic Ed
  • Campaign Finance
  • Directory
  • Election Dissection
  • Fact Check
  • Glossary
  • Independent Voter News
  • News
  • Analysis
  • Subscriptions
  • Log in
Leveraging Our Differences
  • news & opinion
    • Big Picture
      • Civic Ed
      • Ethics
      • Leadership
      • Leveraging big ideas
      • Media
    • Business & Democracy
      • Corporate Responsibility
      • Impact Investment
      • Innovation & Incubation
      • Small Businesses
      • Stakeholder Capitalism
    • Elections
      • Campaign Finance
      • Independent Voter News
      • Redistricting
      • Voting
    • Government
      • Balance of Power
      • Budgeting
      • Congress
      • Judicial
      • Local
      • State
      • White House
    • Justice
      • Accountability
      • Anti-corruption
      • Budget equity
    • Columns
      • Beyond Right and Left
      • Civic Soul
      • Congress at a Crossroads
      • Cross-Partisan Visions
      • Democracy Pie
      • Our Freedom
  • Pop Culture
      • American Heroes
      • Ask Joe
      • Celebrity News
      • Comedy
      • Dance, Theatre & Film
      • Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging
      • Faithful & Mindful Living
      • Music, Poetry & Arts
      • Sports
      • Technology
      • Your Take
      • American Heroes
      • Ask Joe
      • Celebrity News
      • Comedy
      • Dance, Theatre & Film
      • Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging
      • Faithful & Mindful Living
      • Music, Poetry & Arts
      • Sports
      • Technology
      • Your Take
  • events
  • About
      • Mission
      • Advisory Board
      • Staff
      • Contact Us
Sign Up
  1. Home>
  2. Big Picture>

The 10 states where patriotism is the most (and least) measurable

Shirin Ali
June 22, 2020
Map of USA with flag
David Gn Photography/Getty Images

New Hampshire is the most patriotic place in the country, based on its residents' strong measure of civic engagement and decently high rate of military service. And New Jersey, just four hours by car to the south, is the least flag-waving state.

These results come from the latest rankings of the states from the personal financial services website Wallet Hub, which churns out a steady diet of reports assessing the "best" and "worst" states on all sorts of social, economic and behavioral scales.

The new report was released Monday in plenty of time to be digested before July Fourth, but also in light of the unusual combination of stresses likely limiting patriotic fervor this summer. The coronavirus pandemic, and the nationwide protests against police brutality and systemic racism, are magnifying an incredibly divisive political landscape already getting heightened in an election year.



Source: WalletHub


"Many people may find it hard to celebrate a country in which racist incidents persist," Wallet Hub noted, and the customary array of parades, fireworks displays and cookouts will likely be limited by social distancing requirements in many parts of the county. But it's important to note that there are plenty of ways Americans can express patriotism year-round," the company said, Include thanking our servicemembers, remaining politically active, buying U.S.-made goods, taking time to learn about our history or volunteering to help your fellow Americans."

Sign up for The Fulcrum newsletter

The study compared the states across 13 key indicators of patriotism, ranging from the number of military enlistees and veterans in each state to the share of adults who voted in the 2016 presidential and primary elections and the number of AmeriCorps and Peace Corps volunteers per capita. Three-quarters of the points were awarded for civic engagement and the rest for commitment to military service.

The top possible score was 100, but New Hampshire came in at No. 1 with a 64 — while New Jersey's 22 was the lowest red-white-and-blue tally.

Delaware, the home of presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, came in 31st. But New York, which President Trump has called home his whole life, came in 49th — for a variety of reasons. It has only 54 veterans for every thousand residents, for example, a small fraction of the 127 per 1,000 veteran population of Alaska, the highest share of any state.

Maine, the 15th most patriotic state, had the highest share of adults who voted in the 2016 presidential election: 73 percent. Hawaii had the lowest turnout, at 47 percent, one reason its patriotism ranking was 38th place.

While stressing the virtues of patriotism even in a highly partisan time, Wallet Hub also concluded that states that vote reliably Republican for president are generally more patriotic than those on which the Democratic nominee can count

And, of the top 10 highest scorers, six can be counted on to be colored red in November while only Maryland will be blue. (New Hampshire, Minnesota and Wisconsin are purple for now.)

1. New Hampshire (64 points)
2. Wyoming (62)
3. Idaho (62)
4. Alaska (61)
5. Maryland (61)
6. Utah (61)
7. North Dakota (60)
8. Wisconsin (60)
9. Minnesota (57)
10. South Carolina (57)

Al the other end of the list is something of a mirror image: Six blue states, solidly red West Virginia and three of the biggest battlegrounds: Florida, Texas and Michigan

41. Illinois (32)
42. Michigan (32)
43. Connecticut (31)
44. New Mexico (31)
45. Florida (30)
46. West Virginia (28)
47. Texas (28)
48. California (24)
49. New York (23)
50. New Jersey (22 points)

From Your Site Articles
  • One state could reshape campaign finance and ethics reforms debate ›
  • Turnout by the young soared last year, especially in states with hot ... ›
  • Why are kids today less patriotic? - The Fulcrum ›
  • Gen Z, patriotism and the Fourth of July - The Fulcrum ›
Related Articles Around the Web
  • These are the most patriotic states in America: WalletHub | Fox ... ›
  • Here are the most — and least — patriotic states in America ... ›
  • 2020's Most Patriotic States in America ›

Want to write
for The Fulcrum?

If you have something to say about ways to protect or repair our American democracy, we want to hear from you.

Submit
Get some Leverage Sign up for The Fulcrum Newsletter
Confirm that you are not a bot.
×
Follow
Contributors

Reform in 2023: Leadership worth celebrating

Layla Zaidane

Two technology balancing acts

Dave Anderson

Reform in 2023: It’s time for the civil rights community to embrace independent voters

Jeremy Gruber

Congress’ fix to presidential votes lights the way for broader election reform

Kevin Johnson

Democrats and Republicans want the status quo, but we need to move Forward

Christine Todd Whitman

Reform in 2023: Building a beacon of hope in Boston

Henry Santana
Jerren Chang
latest News

Video: Honoring Memorial Day

Our Staff
26 May

Your Take on congressional incivility

Lennon Wesley III
26 May

White House plan to combat antisemitism needs to take on centuries of hatred, discrimination and even lynching in America

Pamela Nadell
26 May

Shifting the narrative on homelessness in America

David L. Nevins
26 May

Supreme Court math: 3x3=5

Lawrence Goldstone
25 May

Want young people to vote in NY? Open the primaries.

Christina Roggenkamp
25 May
Videos

Video: #ListenFirst Friday YOUnify & CPL

Our Staff

Video: What is the toll of racial violence on Black lives?

Our Staff

Video: What's next for migrants seeking asylum after Title 42

Our Staff

Video: An inside look at the campaign to repeal Pennsylvania’s closed primaries

Our Staff

Video: Where the immigration debate stands today

Our Staff

Video: Bridging divides in the workplace

Our Staff
Podcasts

Podcast: AI revolution: Disaster or great leap forward?

Our Staff
25 May

Podcast: Can we fix America's financial crises?

Our Staff
23 May

Podcast: Gen Z's fight for democracy

Our Staff
22 May

Podcast: Political Football, Inc.

Our Staff
19 May
Recommended
Video: Honoring Memorial Day

Video: Honoring Memorial Day

Test Unlisted
Your Take on congressional incivility

Your Take on congressional incivility

Your Take
White House plan to combat antisemitism needs to take on centuries of hatred, discrimination and even lynching in America

White House plan to combat antisemitism needs to take on centuries of hatred, discrimination and even lynching in America

Government
Video: #ListenFirst Friday YOUnify & CPL

Video: #ListenFirst Friday YOUnify & CPL

Shifting the narrative on homelessness in America

Shifting the narrative on homelessness in America

Test Unlisted
Supreme Court math: 3x3=5

Supreme Court math: 3x3=5

Government