PHOENIX - It’s almost the Fourth of July, a time to show our American pride. And speaking of American pride, a recent study by WalletHub showed some states bleed a little more red, white and blue than others.
Researchers measured military engagement, voting habits and civic-education requirements in order to rank the states.
Here are the top five:
1. Virginia
2. Alaska
3. South Carolina
4. Colorado
5. Georgia
Illinois, Rhode Island, New York and Connecticut are at the bottom of the list, with New Jersey coming in last.
When it comes to patriotism, you might think Arizona would rank pretty highly, but you’d be wrong -- at least when it comes to this ranking. Arizona came in at No. 36 on the list.
The problem is civic engagement, a category in which Arizona came in dead last. In other words, there are less people voting and volunteering in Arizona than in other states, according to the study.
In fact, of all the states, Arizona had the lowest percentage of people who voted in the 2012 presidential election.
SHOW YOUR APPRECIATION: Say thanks to our troops this 4th of July weekend
When looking at just military engagement, Arizona ranks in the top 10. We’re No. 5 for the highest percentage of residents who enlisted in the military and No. 8 for military engagement overall.
So the problem isn’t that Arizonans don’t love their country, it’s just that apparently nobody wants to vote.
