Throughout centuries and across continents, the political meaning of liberalism has evolved to represent a very different set of principles than it once did.
Researchers determined that the first time the term "liberal" was used in a political manner was around 1769, when Scottish economist Adam Smith applied the word to discussions about trade and policy. To believe in liberal principles, for Smith, was to strive for natural liberty—or the right for any person to pursue their own interests as long as they stayed within the lines of the law.
Historically, liberal values in the U.S. have been characterized by an emphasis on freedoms and an expectation that the government should intervene to improve the lives of its citizens. Programs like the New Deal, the legalization of unions, and the establishment of social security exemplified this idea.
As for how many people maintain these views, that's a number that continues to shift. According to a January 2025 poll from YouGov, 17% of Americans consider themselves liberal, while an additional 9% consider themselves very liberal. That's close to the 27% who identify as left of center, though nowadays, the liberal identity isn't always embraced by those on the left. Some have found mainstream liberal values in the Democratic party too friendly to corporations, too lenient on issues like Israel's bombing campaign in Gaza, and increasingly out of touch with workers. Nevertheless, the same YouGov poll found that 76% of U.S. adults believe "liberal" and "left" always or sometimes mean the same thing.
Debates between self-identified liberals and leftists can take up a lot of space in the media, but through it all, the conflict between conservatives and liberals remains glaringly apparent in the U.S. On Presidents' Day in 2025, thousands gathered across the country to protest the policies of President Donald Trump, who has enacted dozens of conservative executive orders since taking office in January. According to an NBC News poll published on April 28, 2025 measuring Trump's approval after 100 days, 93% of Democrats disapprove of his presidency.
Other Americans are handling their political frustrations differently than protesting—in some cases, by putting off having kids. An article published in The Atlantic in February 2025 suggests that birth rates among liberal Americans may very well decline under the current administration, citing a 2022 study that found the partisan birth gap grew by 17% during Trump's first term in office.
But plenty of places in the U.S. still lean left. Stacker ranked each state first by the percentage of residents who identify as liberal and then by the percentage of the state's voters who voted for Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election, using data from Gallup, 270toWin, and the Cook Political Report's 2020 National Popular Vote Tracker.
Continue reading to find out how many liberals there are in every state, beginning with the state with the least liberals in the U.S.
