In measures of economic strength, social cohesion, and fiscal position, blue and purple states are generally outperforming red states

In recent decades, U.S. states have embraced a number of different economic and social policies, depending on which party – Republican or Democratic – controls the government. David Wise examines the effectiveness of states’ differing approaches to policy by comparing their ranking across two dozen indices. He finds that due to higher levels of investment and fewer ‘culture war’ wedge issues, blue – or Democratic – states tended to score higher than their Republican counterparts in terms of economic strength, levels of social cohesion, and importantly, the state’s net Federal fiscal position.