Washington state had more liberals than conservatives in 2017 -- marking the first time the state has become net-liberal, according to polling from Gallup. It's part of a trend happening nationwide.
As recently as 2010, all 50 states were net-conservative, according to Gallup. That number dropped to 44 in 2016 and again to 39 last year.
Why is this happening now? Gallup says one reason is younger liberal adults are replacing older conservatives in the population.
It might surprise some to learn Washington just became net-liberal, based on how this state has voted in the past few decades. Washington hasn't voted for a Republican for president since Ronald Reagan in 1984 and hasn't voted a Republican for governor since John Spellman in 1981. It's also had two Democrats as its U.S. senators since 2001. Statewide elections and measures in Washington -- including same-sex marriage, legalizing marijuana, and the "death with dignity" law -- most often go in favor of the left.
Gallup calls Washington "Solid Democrat," and finds Democrats have a 49 percent to 34 percent advantage over Republicans in this state.
But neither liberals nor conservatives are in the majority in Washington. The poll finds 36 percent of respondents describe themselves as moderate. Thirty percent are liberal, and 29 percent are conservative.
The other first-time net-liberal states are California, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Maryland.
Washington, Oregon, and California currently have Democrats controlling the governor's office and both houses of their state legislatures -- a so-called "blue wall." All six U.S. senators from those states are also Democrat.
Only four states saw a net increase in conservatives: Wyoming, North Dakota, Montana, and Kansas.
The most conservative state was Wyoming. The most liberal were Vermont and Massachusetts.
The Gallup poll interviewed 180,106 adults nationwide.
