Study Shows Everybody Hates Illinois

By Samantha Abernethy in News on Feb 27, 2012 10:20PM

Illinois is the second most hated state in the country, beaten only by California, according to a study by Public Policy Polling. Survey says...

Q1 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion of the state of Illinois?
Favorable........................................................ 19%
Unfavorable .................................................... 29%
Not sure .......................................................... 52%

Frankly I think we should be more angry with those people who said "not sure" instead of those who voted "unfavorable." Better to be hated than forgotten, right? After all, being hated is a somewhat unique distinction.

Americans generally have a favorable view of most states. Only five are in negative territory, led by California (27% favorable and 44% unfavorable), Illinois (19-29), New Jersey (25-32), Mississippi (22-28), and Utah (24-27). Only seven other states have net-positive ratings in the single digits, and another breaks even (Louisiana).

Wait, people hate Illinois more than they hate New Jersey? Well that's just not right. The poll also showed that Republicans "absolutely hate California, followed distantly by Illinois and Massachusetts." That's ok.