This week, United Van Lines released their annual “moving habits” study, detailing which American cities gained the most new transplants, and which saw the largest exodus.
According to their data, the following cities saw the highest percentage of new residents compared to departures:
- Wilmington, NC
- Sarasota, FL
- Boise, ID
- Huntsville, AL
- Ft. Myers, FL
- Knoxville, TN
- Melbourne, FL
- Austin, TX
- Nashville, TN
- Fort Collins, CO
Notice anything about that list? Given the headline, you probably already know where this is going. Nine of these ten cities are in “red” states.
On the other end of the spectrum, let’s take a look at the cities losing residents at the highest rate:
- Nassau, NY
- Bergen, NJ
- Trenton, NJ
- New York, NY
- Newark, NJ
- Chicago, IL
- Bremerton, WA
- Bridgeport, CT
- Middlesex, NJ
- Lake, IL
That’s right, every single city on that list is in a solidly “blue” state. This isn’t just an anomaly limited to the top ten, either. 23 of the top 25 cities on the “moving from” list were in states dominated by Democrats.
It turns out that liberal and leftist policies are a lot more popular with politicians and woke voters than those who have to live with the consequences. Leftist voters are happy to elect leaders promising “free stuff.” Evidently, they’re not so happy when the bill for that “free” stuff inevitably falls in their lap.
Residents in New York have the highest tax burden of any state in the country. Connecticut is the sixth worst, New Jersey the seventh worst, and Illinois the ninth worst.
By contrast, every single city on the “moving to” list is in a red conservative state with a tax burden well below the national average. Florida, for example, has the fourth lowest tax burden, with Tennessee having the second lowest, Alabama having the eighth lowest, and Idaho having the thirteenth lowest.
That’s not a coincidence.
Perhaps if Democrat politicians weren’t taxing their constituents so heavily, they might stick around instead of fleeing for warmer (and redder) climates.
People may not always vote with their pocketbook, but they do move with their pocketbook. Thanks to the increased career flexibility brought by technology, fewer Americans than ever before find themselves stuck in states with a high cost of living.
One might also wonder the impact COVID-19 regulations have had on moving habits in 2020. In addition to being among the most highly taxed states in America, many of the cities on the “moving from” list are among those with the strictest COVID-19 regulations amid the pandemic.
With Democrat politicians seemingly in a competition to see who can single handedly shut down the most small businesses, current and looming business lockdowns have surely been the last straw for many a weary small business owner.
For example, it’s a tall task for any Democrat politician to convince an already overtaxed single mother to sit around and wait for her employer to open back up, instead of seeking out opportunities in states with economies that are open and booming.
With vaccinations moving forward at a snail’s pace and an incoming Biden administration intent on shutting down the economy further, many average Americans are moving not to make a political statement, but to survive.
Now it’s time for refugees fleeing blue states to realize one thing: if they vote for Democrat politicians in their new state, there won’t be anywhere left to flee to.
Cabot Phillips is Managing Editor of The Daily Wire’s Readers Pass. Follow him on Twitter at @cabot_phillips
The views expressed in this opinion piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.