While only 64.1 percent of African Americans were registered to vote in the 2022 midterms, 70.9 percent of White Americans were. This prompted WalletHub to publish its report on the best states for racial equality in civic engagement in June. WalletHub compared all 50 states and D.C. on five key metrics to find out where racial equality in civic engagement is highest. Its database examines demographic differences between White and Black Americans, such as the prevalence of single-parent households, rates of volunteerism and rates of voter participation.
Arizona ranked at the bottom of the list of the most quality states for racial equality in civic engagement. The state with a score of 88.08 out of 100. According to the study, Wisconsin is the least engaged state in terms of civic engagement.
Encouraging the Younger Generation
Angie Beeman, an associate professor at New York’s Baruch College, argues that encouraging young people of color to participate in youth caucuses can help attract and keep them in the political process.
“In general, young people face a lot of demands on their time from their schools, what they may be managing at home, and in their communities,” Beeman said. “There has also been a lot of discussion in the past few years about stress and mental health. State and local governments can help schools address how much testing and homework are necessary and build supportive environments at school.”
According to the professor, schools should implement safety measures that make students feel safe and aren’t overly monitored.
“Collaborations between schools and community organizations could assist in connecting young people to potential volunteer and engagement opportunities, which could be built into the curriculum while easing some other requirements.”
Several States Made Voting Harder
Bernadette Ludwig, an associate Professor at Wagner College, said that an increasing number of states made it much more difficult for people to vote last year.
“Ethno-racial minorities are especially affected by various forms of voter suppression that include but are not limited to, purging of voter rolls, ID requirements, a limited number of polling stations, limiting early voting days and times, lengthy and cumbersome voter registration processes, requiring to request a mail-in ballot for every election, requiring a street address to register to vote and failing to restore voting rights after serving a sentence,” she stated. “Redistricting and redrawing of congressional districts have frequently silenced or limited the impact that ethno-racial minorities can have in elections. Not surprisingly, this has left many voters who are ethno-racial minorities disenfranchised and thus disillusioned.”
The Ranking
| Most Equality | Least Equality |
| 1. Arizona | 40. District of Columbia |
| 2. New Mexico | 41. New Hampshire |
| 3. Maryland | 42. Pennsylvania |
| 4. Maine | 43. Massachusetts |
| 5. Delaware | 44. North Dakota |
| 6. California | 45. Oregon |
| 7. Georgia | 46. South Dakota |
| 8. Washington | 47. Iowa |
| 9. North Carolina | 48. Vermont |
| 10. Virginia | 49. Wisconsin |
The full report can be viewed at WalletHub.