With March being Women’s History Month and women only holding 23.7 percent of the seats in Congress despite making up 51 percent of the U.S. population, the personal-finance website WalletHub has released its report on 2019’s Best & Worst States for Women.
To identify the most women-friendly states, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 24 key metrics. The data set ranges from median earnings for female workers to women’s preventive health care to female homicide rate.
Tennessee ranked 35th overall with a total score of 49.01 (contrasted with the highest-ranking state of Minnesota, with 79.34), a “women’s economic and social well-being rank” of 27 and a “women’s health and safety rank” of 43. It also ranked 49th in the percent of women who voted in the 2016 presidential election and 44th in the lowest female homicide rates per 100,000 women.
Best States for Women
1. Minnesota
2. Massachusetts
3. North Dakota
4. District of Columbia
5. New York
6. Connecticut
7. Maine
8. Colorado
9. Hawaii
10. Vermont
Worst States for Women
42. Texas
43. New Mexico
44. Idaho
45. West Virginia
46. Oklahoma
47. Alabama
48. Arkansas
49. South Carolina
50. Mississippi
51. Louisiana
Best vs. worst
- The District of Columbia has the highest median earnings for female workers (adjusted for cost of living), $34,417, which is 1.5 times higher than in California, the lowest at $22,508.
- The District of Columbia has the highest share of women who voted in the 2016 presidential election, 77.2 percent, which is 1.6 times higher than in Hawaii, the lowest at 49.3 percent.
- New Hampshire has the lowest share of women living in poverty, 8.9 percent, which is 2.6 times lower than in Mississippi, the highest at 23.5 percent.
- Alaska has the highest share of women-owned businesses, 22.87 percent, which is 1.6 times higher than in South Dakota, the lowest at 14.04 percent.
- Massachusetts has the lowest female uninsured rate, 2.3 percent, which is 7.6 times lower than in Texas, the highest at 17.5 percent.
To view the full report, visit bit.ly/StatesForWomen.
