Nevadans top in US for wanting to abandon ship

The hate just keeps coming for Nevada.

One week after a Gallup poll showed Nevada is one of the most loathed states to live in, Gallup has come out with another blow to the Silver State: Nevada is fourth in the nation for residents who say they would leave if they could.

The poll found 43 percent of Nevadans say they wish they could leave, behind Illinois, Connecticut and Maryland. The average for the nation was 33 percent. Here’s the top 10:

1. Illinois: 50%
2. Connecticut: 49%
3. Maryland: 47%
4. Nevada: 43%
5. Rhode Island: 42%
6. New Jersey: 41%
7. New York: 41%
8. Massachusetts: 41%
9. Louisiana: 40%
10. Mississippi: 39%

Residents of Montana, Hawaii and Maine were most content to stay in their respective states, with only 23 percent of respondents in each state saying they would leave if they could.

Gallup also asked how likely residents are to move out of state within the next 12 months. Here, Nevada topped the list, with 20 percent of respondents saying they were extremely, very or somewhat likely to move. The national average was just 6 percent.

The primary reasons Nevada residents would move were work (30%) and family or friends (22%).

The rest were split between moving because of weather or location, quality of life or a change, for school-related reasons or because of the cost of living. The top states are as follows:

1. Nevada: 20%
2. Illinois: 19%
3. Arizona: 19%
4. Maryland: 17%
5. Louisiana: 17%
6. Idaho: 17%
7. South Carolina: 17%
8. Mississippi: 16%
9. New York: 16%
10. Connecticut: 16%
11. North Carolina: 16%

Maine, Iowa and Vermont had the smallest percentage of people planning to move within the next year, at 8 percent each.

Contact Stephanie Grimes at sgrimes@reviewjournal.com. Find her on Twitter: @stephgrimes