Americans may feel their patriotism dampened this year in the face of societal issues like relentless high inflation and elevated homicide rates. Many people may find it hard to celebrate a country where countless people are struggling and frequent violence persists. However, an expression of love for fellow citizens is patriotic in itself.
Despite the problems facing the country, around 87% of Americans will still gather on July 4th – the most patriotic day of the year – to celebrate the good in our nation. In order to determine where Americans have the most red, white and blue pride, WalletHub compared the states across 13 key indicators of patriotism. Our data set ranges from the state’s military enlistees and veterans to the share of adults who voted in the 2020 presidential election to AmeriCorps volunteers per capita.
Most Patriotic States in the U.S.
Overall Rank | State | Total Score | Military Engagement | Civic Engagement |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Virginia | 61.01 | 3 | 8 |
2 | Montana | 59.63 | 22 | 3 |
3 | Alaska | 57.98 | 1 | 24 |
4 | North Dakota | 56.33 | 20 | 7 |
5 | Maine | 56.08 | 38 | 2 |
6 | Vermont | 54.82 | 46 | 1 |
7 | Oregon | 53.84 | 36 | 5 |
8 | Colorado | 53.30 | 11 | 13 |
9 | Wyoming | 52.85 | 7 | 16 |
10 | New Hampshire | 52.60 | 32 | 6 |
11 | Hawaii | 52.58 | 2 | 31 |
12 | Maryland | 52.15 | 23 | 9 |
13 | Washington | 51.79 | 14 | 15 |
14 | Iowa | 51.69 | 41 | 4 |
15 | Delaware | 50.53 | 25 | 11 |
16 | South Dakota | 50.44 | 24 | 12 |
17 | Utah | 46.75 | 37 | 10 |
18 | Idaho | 46.67 | 18 | 20 |
19 | Kansas | 46.54 | 15 | 22 |
20 | Arizona | 46.31 | 16 | 21 |
21 | Missouri | 45.58 | 27 | 17 |
22 | North Carolina | 44.64 | 6 | 38 |
23 | Georgia | 43.73 | 5 | 42 |
24 | New Mexico | 42.97 | 10 | 33 |
25 | West Virginia | 42.45 | 34 | 18 |
26 | Oklahoma | 41.85 | 8 | 37 |
27 | Minnesota | 41.74 | 47 | 14 |
28 | Mississippi | 41.69 | 17 | 32 |
29 | South Carolina | 40.88 | 4 | 47 |
30 | Illinois | 40.51 | 39 | 19 |
31 | Ohio | 38.65 | 33 | 26 |
32 | Nebraska | 38.17 | 28 | 35 |
33 | Texas | 38.12 | 9 | 46 |
34 | Nevada | 38.01 | 13 | 45 |
35 | Kentucky | 36.82 | 21 | 44 |
36 | Michigan | 36.51 | 45 | 25 |
37 | California | 35.84 | 30 | 39 |
38 | Louisiana | 35.80 | 26 | 43 |
39 | Tennessee | 35.65 | 31 | 40 |
40 | New Jersey | 35.09 | 48 | 23 |
41 | Connecticut | 34.94 | 42 | 28 |
42 | Pennsylvania | 34.44 | 44 | 29 |
43 | Alabama | 34.36 | 12 | 48 |
44 | Wisconsin | 33.89 | 43 | 30 |
45 | Indiana | 33.39 | 35 | 41 |
46 | Florida | 32.91 | 19 | 49 |
47 | New York | 32.84 | 49 | 27 |
48 | Rhode Island | 32.68 | 40 | 36 |
49 | Massachusetts | 30.49 | 50 | 34 |
50 | Arkansas | 26.87 | 29 | 50 |
Note: With the exception of “Total Score,” all of the columns in the table above depict the relative rank of that state, where a rank of 1 represents the best conditions for that metric category.
- Highest
- 1. Georgia
- 2. Alaska
- 3. Texas
- 4. South Carolina
- 5. Hawaii
- Lowest
- 46. Minnesota
- 47. Massachusetts
- 48. Rhode Island
- 49. Vermont
- 50. North Dakota
- Most
- 1. Alaska
- 2. Virginia
- 3. Wyoming
- 4. Montana
- 5. Hawaii
- Fewest
- 46. Utah
- 47. Massachusetts
- 48. California
- 49. New Jersey
- 50. New York
- Most
- 1. Vermont
- 2. Montana
- 3. Maryland
- 4. Virginia
- 5. Oregon
- Fewest
- 46. Arkansas
- 47. North Dakota
- 48. South Dakota
- 49. Mississippi
- 50. Alabama
- Highest %
- 1. New Jersey
- 2. Minnesota
- 3. Oregon
- 4. New Hampshire
- T-5. Wisconsin
- T-5. Maryland
- Lowest %
- 46. Alabama
- 47. South Dakota
- 48. Oklahoma
- 49. West Virginia
- 50. Arkansas
- Highest
- 1. Utah
- 2. Wyoming
- 3. Minnesota
- 4. Maine
- 5. South Dakota
- Lowest
- T-45. Hawaii
- T-45. New Mexico
- 47. Alabama
- 48. California
- 49. Nevada
- 50. Florida
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:
- What are the characteristics of a good patriot?
- What are the best ways for an individual to show patriotism?
- What is the relative influence of economic incentives versus patriotic intentions when deciding whether or not to join the military? Has this changed over time?
- Should we be raising our children as global citizens first or as Americans first?
- What measures should schools and local authorities undertake in order to promote patriotism among citizens?
Ask the Experts
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 the states.
Military Engagement – Total Points: 25
- Average Military Enlistees per 1,000 Civilian Adults Between 2015 & 2020 (No Prior Service): Triple Weight (~10.71 Points)
- Veterans per 1,000 Civilian Adults: Full Weight (~3.57 Points)
- Active-Duty Military Personnel per 100,000 Civilian Adults: Double Weight (~7.14 Points)
- Share of Civilian Adult Population in Military Reserves: Full Weight (~3.57 Points)
Civic Engagement – Total Points: 75
- Share of Adults Who Voted in 2020 Presidential Election: Double Weight (~16.67 Points)
- Share of Adults Who Voted in 2020 Primary Elections: Full Weight (~8.33 Points)
- Volunteer Rate: Half Weight (~4.17 Points)
- Volunteer Hours per Resident: Half Weight (~4.17 Points)
- AmeriCorps Volunteers per Capita: Half Weight (~4.17 Points)
- Peace Corps Volunteers per Capita: Half Weight (~4.17 Points)
- Trial- & Grand-Jury Participation per Civilian Adult Population: Double Weight (~16.67 Points)
- Share of Residents Who Participate in Groups or Organizations (Civic Life): Full Weight (~8.33 Points)
- U.S. History/Civics Education Requirement: Full Weight (~8.33 Points)
Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected from the U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Defense Manpower Data Center, Peace Corps, Military OneSource, United States Elections Project, Administrative Office of the United States Courts, AmeriCorps and The Thomas B. Fordham Institute.
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