From Wallet Hub November 3, 2014
As we head to the polls tomorrow and with many races being too close to call, the leading personal finance social network WalletHub conducted an in-depth analysis of 2014’s States with the Most & Least Powerful Voters. We did so by calculating the number of elected officials in the federal government per adult population in each state for the most recent election years. We also conducted year-over-year comparisons of the same calculations. This report comes on the heels of a previous report, 2014’s Most and Least Politically Engaged States.
(Hawaii ranks 11th.)
We did so in order to point out the growing disparities between voters’ influence across state lines as well as to spark a conversation on whether it’s time to change the current voting system.
| States with the Most Powerful Voters |
|
States with the Least Powerful Voters |
| |
1 |
Wyoming |
|
41 |
New Jersey |
| |
2 |
Vermont |
|
42 |
Virginia |
| |
3 |
Alaska |
|
43 |
Illinois |
| |
4 |
North Dakota |
|
44 |
Ohio |
| |
5 |
Rhode Island |
|
45 |
North Carolina |
| |
6 |
South Dakota |
|
46 |
Pennsylvania |
| |
7 |
Delaware |
|
47 |
Texas |
| |
8 |
New Hampshire |
|
48 |
California |
| |
9 |
Montana |
|
49 |
New York |
| |
10 |
Maine |
|
50 |
Florida |
Key Stats
- Voters in red states are more powerful, with an average ranking of 22.25, compared with voters in blue states, with an average ranking of 28.50 (1 = Most Powerful).
- In Senate elections, the gap between the most and least powerful voters has declined from 83 times in 1960 to 65 times in 2014.
- For the Senate elections, in 2014, the voters in Wyoming are 65 times more powerful than in California.
- In Presidential elections, the gap between the most and least powerful voters has declined from six times in 1960 to four times in 2014.
- For the Presidential election, in 2012, the voters in Wyoming were four times more powerful than in New York.
- For the House of Representatives, in 2014, the voters in Rhode Island are two times more powerful than in Montana.
For the full report and to see where your state ranks, please visit: http://wallethub.com/edu/states-with-most-and-least-powerful-voters/7932/
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