By Lauren Colley
June 30, 2015Patriotism is on the decline, according to a new study, with 38% of Americans saying that the United States was the best country in the world in 2011, and only 28% of Americans agreeing with the statement in 2014.
Just ahead of Independence Day, WalletHub took the patriotic pulse of the 50 U.S. states, comparing them across eight metrics from two categories: military engagement and civic engagement.
Georgia has a relatively high overall ranking of 10, and a ranking of 1 and 30 in the categories of military enegagement and civic engagement, respectively.
Most patriotic states in the U.S.
1. Virginia
2. Washington
3. Colorado
4. Idaho
5. Alaska
6. Maine
7. North Caroolina
8. New Hampshire
9. South Carolina
10. Georgia
Least patriotic states in the U.S.
46. West Virginia
47. Utah
48. Rhode Island
49. New Jersey
50. New York
Other key findings from the study include:
• The percentage of residents enlisted in the military is three times higher in Georgia (highest percentage of enlisted residents) than it is in North Dakota (lowest percentage of enlisted residents).
• The number of veterans per capita is twice as great in Alaska (most veterans per capita) than in New York (fewest veterans per capita).
• The number of Peace Corps volunteers per capita is 23 times greater in Vermont (most Peace Corps volunteers) than in Mississippi (fewest Peace Corps volunteers per capita).
• The percentage of residents who voted in the most recent presidential election is twice as high in Minnesota (highest percentage of residents who voted) than in Arizona (lowest percentage of residents who voted).
• The volunteer rate in Utah is three times higher in Utah (highest volunteer rate) than it is in Louisiana (lowest vonuteer rate).
The study was developed using information from the U.S. Census Bureau, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the Defense Manpower Data Center, the Office of the Under Secretary for Personnel and Readiness, the Corporation for National & Community Service, the Bipartisan Policy Center, Peacecorps.gov, the Military OneSource and the Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement.
