The most conservative and the most liberal states in 2018 - you may be a bit surprised
Bottom Line: There are a number of different ways to measure the overall political disposition of a state. Mostly commonly people view Presidential election cycles as the overall barometer. Through that prism Minnesota would actually be the most liberal. Why? How? Every state except Minnesota has voted for a Republican candidate for President as recently as 1984 except for Minnesota. The last time they voted for a Republican was 1972. Another way is through social policies like the legalization of marijuana for example. If that were the barometer Colorado and California would be the most liberal. Here's a hint though. None of those three are the most liberal and the stereo-types that exist with the south don't hold true either here for the most conservative. Gallup has research on the politicization of partisans. In other words which states have the highest percentage of conservatives and liberals - those with the strongest political views - as a percentage of the population. When you look at states through that prism here are the results:
Most conservative:
- Wyoming: 33%
- Mississippi: 29%
- Alabama: 27%
Least conservative:
- Vermont: -14%
- Massachusetts: -13%
- Rhode Island: -5%
Surprised yet? California is only the 6th most liberal state and Utah is only the 7th most conservative state. Btw, where's Florida? Right where you'd expect us to be. Right in the middle. Florida is 13% more conservative than liberal but ranks as the 25th state ideologically.