How Politically Engaged Is North Carolina: Rankings

NORTH CAROLINA — The Nov. 6 midterm election is just days away, and it's important to vote and make sure your voice is heard. But nationwide, voter turnout is often lackluster. "Among developed nations, the U.S. is ranked 26th out of 32 when it comes to voter turnout," according to the Pew Research Center.

Presidential elections typically get higher voter turnout than midterms. In the last presidential election year, 2016, a record 137.5 million people voted, or around 61.4 percent of the voting-age population. In 2014, just 36.4 eligible voters cast ballots.

So how does North Carolina compare when it comes to voter turnout and political engagement?

"With Election Day close at hand, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on ten key indicators of political engagement," the site said. "They range from 'percentage of registered voters in the 2016 presidential election' to ''total political contributions per adult population.'"

Out of the 50 states, and D.C., North Carolina ranked No. 19 on WalletHub's list.

When it comes to good citizenship, both young and older voters in North Carolina scored high, according to the survey. Our state ranked 7th when it came to political engagement among young voters 24 years old and younger, and 13th for political engagement of voters over 65.

There's some evidence that the 2018 midterms there is very strong early voter turnout this year in North Carolina. According to the North Carolina State Board of Elections, more than 1.7 million voters had already cast ballots as of Nov. 1, marking about a 32 percent increase over early voting in the 2014 midterm election.

Read the full WalletHub rankings and methodology here.

Patch Editor Shannon Antinori contributed

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