COLLEGE PARK, Maryland — Only four states with Democrat-controlled state legislatures are in the bottom half of U.S. News & World Report’s “Best State” rankings, released this week.
Massachusetts, whose legislature is 79.5 percent democratic across both houses, topped the list, which was based on factors influenced by government policy. A Capital News Service analysis found that 13 of the top 25 ranked states have Democratic majorities, as totaled across both legislative houses.
In the bottom 25, 21 states are Republican-controlled. (Nebraska’s unicameral legislature, which is nonpartisan, rests in the top half.)
Additionally, states with higher median household income tend to place higher in the U.S. News rankings. Notable outliers like Alaska defy this trend, but the range from No. 2 New Hampshire — with the highest median household income in 2015 — to No. 49 Mississippi with the lowest, is clear.