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Your turn first. Give a reason why you put the choices in that order.
I agree with Jtur. Why did you not put the states in alphabetical order at least?
Nothing against California and New York but they do not belong first on a list of best run states. Both are wealthy states where politicians over the years squandered and wasted HUGE amounts of money to buy votes, which has left a major tax burden for today's residents.
I voted for New Hampshire. Not that New Hampshire is perfect but still is better then most of the Northeast. So is neighboring Vermont.
New Hampshire and Iowa deserve credit for making the decision for their early Presidential primaries every 4 years. They get to decide who will be the next President in a way that most other states do not.
I voted MN because they've got among the best healthcare and educational systems in the country. Not to mention longest average lifespan (right behind Hawaii). It's definitely not Florida, where I am.
Before you can address the question of which state is best governed, it is necessary to define the purpose for the existence of state government at all. Why does a state have a government -- What is the goal and objective of the government? How would things be different if there were no state government at all?
Minnesota and Vermont. These really are the two best governed states right now.
I think it has something to do with the winters in both states.
It is true that the least corrupt states tend to be northern: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Michigan, Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Idaho, Wyoming, and Oregon tend to top the lists.
I don't think this is due to weather, however. The states in question are all states which are either part of New England, or were settled originally by large numbers of Yankees. New England developed very early on a very different sort of political consciousness from the rest of the U.S. - a sort of communitarian ideal. Regarding the role of the state, the idea was basically that government could be a positive force in shaping society. High expectations were placed upon citizens regarding participation in civil society. In turn, high expectations were placed on public officials in terms of honesty. This contrasted with the mid-Atlantic and southern ideas regarding government, which were much more cynical, self-interested, and individualistic.
Over time New England has drifted to the left, but you can still see the political kinship between ideals of government in somewhere like Vermont and North Dakota if you look past the partisan leanings of each state.
Location: New Albany, Indiana (Greater Louisville)
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I'd say Colorado because I like their balance between being business friendly (thus great job growth) while being socially progressive. Places like Texas are great for job growth but execute people with IQs of 70 (even Saudi Arabia is like, "Dude that's harsh!") and the New England states have high taxes and stagnant populations while being socially progressive.
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