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Elections
Which States Vote the Least and Which States Vote the Most?
Americans take great pride in our democratic system, which we tout as the main opportunity for our citizens to be a part of the political process. Despite this, voting (the mechanism that gives us the most access to this process) is still something we struggle with: America's voter participation rates are still astonishingly low compared to other developed countries. With a 53.6 percent participation rate among eligible voters, we fall far behind countries such as Belgium (87.2 percent), Sweden (82.6 percent), and France (71.2 percent). In an especially crazy and unpredictable general election year, exercising your right to vote is more crucial than ever.
While the overall national participation rate is low, the rates vary widely on a state-by-state basis. With the presidential election just one day away, Law Street took a look at the average state turnout during general elections to see who's been voting (and who hasn't) for president. We'll have to wait until Election Day to see if these states will maintain their spots on the list.
Click through the slideshow below to see the top to see our rankings of the top five states with the lowest and highest voter turnout rates:
*Note: these numbers reflect the average of the turnout rates of general elections since 1980, based on Census Bureau statistics.
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Image courtesy of kuknauf; License: (CC BY-ND 2.0)
Average Voter Participation: 55.5 percent
Blue/Red/Swing State: Red
Tennessee has historically tended toward having a low voter turnout during general elections. Adam Ghassemi, Director of Communications for Secretary of State Tre Hargett, has attributed poor turnout in the past to a lack of contested elections, which don’t motivate people to come out to vote in high numbers. That is a huge factor that can cut into turnout. This past March, however, the state broke records for primary voting, and Hargett says he expects enormous turnout for the general elections as well.
There is also a large campaign called GoVoteTN being undertaken to move the needle toward higher turnout. In addition to heavy promotion on social media, the initiative has an app that makes it easier for people to find the information they need to come out to the polls.
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