People are relocating because of the changing political environment

Last updated on December 5th, 2021 at 12:40 am

There are many typical reasons why people want to relocate. Some popular reasons are “downsize”, “job”, “be close to family”, “live near the beach”, “lower cost for retirement” etc. The list is endless and most of us have heard people discussing their reasons which generally seem reasonable. There is a new item to add to the list and that is for “politics”.

This blogsite has attempted to remain as neutral as possible about politics and even this article is a case in point. The problem with trying to be neutral is the very definition of politics today. The term “politics” generally involved discussing the differences between various political parties. Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and others. Political conversations usually included a discussion about elected officials and their policies. That was until more recent times.

Today’s definition of politics seems to include any talk about gender, race, social welfare, and virtually everything else. People are being pushed and pulled to one side or the other of the political spectrum with little room in the middle. I have often said that should John Kennedy be president today, he would be a Republican. But wait, even the term Democrat and Republican are a bit outdated.

Pick one

Pick a category: Ultra leftist, leftist, progressive, liberal, socialist or rightwing, conservative, ultra-right-wing, and ultra-ultra right wing. I almost forgot, there may be a place for independents. Some believe that even those who claim to be independents have decided to vote one way for social issues and another for fiscal issues.

Entire cities and even neighborhoods are changing their political views. I remember living in Orange County, CA which was the home of Conservatism. I went to vote many years ago and I looked at the sign-in sheet. There were about two democrats the remainder were republicans. That has changed drastically now. Orange County went for the democrats in the last presidential election and is likely to stay that way in the future.

As new people move into the area, younger people becoming of voting age, and people of one political persuasion moving out, politics may tend to change. Residents who were comfortable with the laws and regulations of the past have now become uncomfortable with some changes. California is an example of a state undergoing major changes and some do not like the direction the state is going in. Some of these changes are leading to rising crime and more lax law enforcement.

Fear for security

From what I am seeing, conservatives are the ones most uncomfortable with the changing political scene. Older democrats that identify as moderate and even independents are among those uncomfortable about recent changes. Just read any “news” website or TV and see the many changes that are overtaking some communities. I believe that this changing political climate is essentially a fear for personal and property security.

It’s better to say that “I am considering relocation because of the changing political climate” than to outright say “I am in fear for the security and welfare of my family”. Regardless of what the person says, when they start looking online to see if there is a better place to live, they are looking for a better political climate.

This topic of the local political climate is rarely broached in the media or any search engines. There are no checkboxes next to # bedrooms, # bathrooms, etc. It would be nice to find a search box that said “Area: Conservative or Liberal.

Some people follow the heard

Your friend tells you that moving to X is a good decision because “everyone” is moving there. This may be true, perhaps following he heard to a new location will help you with your political anxiety. Perhaps not. The issue with following the heard is that sometimes the heard includes influencers who want to establish the old community in a new area. This generally means that the new place becomes just like the old place. A term coined in this article in Forbs “Leftugees” confirms what this blog is about but puts a name on those who most tend to relocate

Consider how this country has changed to the point where we are moving for politics and policies. Who would have imagined this 20 years ago? After living and perhaps growing up in your community to see it change so much overtime is just too much for some. We know the stories about how the inner cities went from affluence to poverty in the 20th century. People moved to the suburbs.

People who are considering relocating because of politics are not living in big cities as much as they are living in suburbs. Again, who would have thought that the suburbs would be changing like the inner cities. California recently changed its zoning laws to permit property owners in the suburbs to build additional housing in their back yards. You can even convert your garage to living space.

Is this too political for you?

Is this article becoming too political for you? I hope not. If you want to build a house in your backyard, that’s up to you and your elected officials. This is simply being used as an example that people who bought a home in an area with zoning requirements did not expect people to fill the streets with cars.

Unfortunately, most people, in my opinion, take little action on their own to affect change locally. During my career, I worked with the local government for many years. You would be shocked at how few people attend city council meetings. When a small handful of people wanted something passed, they showed up and got it done. I estimate that less than 1% of residents participate in decision-making.

Changes that are occurring in the political landscape are being influenced by an extreme minority of people. It’s the failure of the rest of us to stand up which causes shifts in policy. Sorry for my lecturing here. If your area seems to be a lost cause, perhaps it’s time to move.

How to determine the political nature of a commuity

This is just my opinion and you should seek others about this topic. Check the voter roles or even the census for registered voters. This is a good place to start. If you are looking for a conservative area, look for more republican voters, the same is true if you are progressive, look for Democrat voters.

Lots of data is available from the last election. Many analysts believe that if you voted for Biden, you are more likely to be liberal. Of course, the opposite should be true if you voted for Trump. Check out the results of the 2020 election in Mississippi. You can see other results on this website.

Start with state governments. Southern states tend to be more conservative but that is changing due to the influence of their large cities. Texas is a conservative state but it is moving in the direction of being a neutral then democrat. Large cities across the nation usually vote liberal and democratic.

Does the state you want to move to have a “stand your ground law”? More conservative states have such laws, more liberal states do not or if they do, juries do not agree. The 2nd amendment is an important test for a liberal vs conservative state.

States that support the 2nd amendment vigorously do not encourage firearm ownership as much as they encourage personal responsibility. In other words, if you are dumb enough to put yourself in a position where you can be shot, who’s fault is that?

Large city populations can impact statewide politics

Large city populations tend to influence statewide politics. Be sure you are thinking well ahead. Ask yourself, where is this state headed in the future. Another example is Mississippi (considered the most conservative state). The state is solidly in the conservative column while the largest city Jackson is a very liberal city. Looking at the political map of Mississippi, you can see that most of the state is conservative. Look at the map of California and you can see that essentially only the rural areas are conservative.

As you dive into a region or city look at the trends of the people who are moving there. Are liberals or conservatives moving to the area? It’s not just your side that wants to move. Perhaps you are a liberal and do not like the politics of say, Ocean Springs, MS which is a conservative city. It has been my observation that liberals living in a bastion of conservatism are generally not abused. Most conservative areas do not stifle expression or speech.

Liberals should feel comfortable living almost anywhere. Conservatives on the other hand have seen what can happen to them if they are for example supporters of the 2nd amendment.

Look at the number of people who profess to be people of faith. Again, this is just my observation that more conservatives are people of religious faith than are progressive/liberals. A good example is the Mississippi Gulf Coast. It seems there is a church on every corner. A very large percentage of people I know where attend church on a regular or semi-regular basis. You may recall politicians running for president talking down to people of faith.

Investigate the schools

Check the local schools. Are they teaching CRT or progressive beliefs? Some states have banned CRT which is a very conservative move. Have the school’s adopted gender rules and other social rules that parents have not been consulted on?

If you are a liberal you probably invite the schools to take a more active role in raising your child. A conservative generally wants government out of their family life. Some states have banned CRT, some are in the process of banning it. Mississippi for example does believe that it is being taught anywhere in the state. I am using CRT (critical race theory) as a litmus test for conservative vs liberal schools.

Are the schools funded? How are the ratings? This is neither a republican nor democrat issue per se, students should be allowed to learn regardless of the politics. A liberal school may tend to favor arts whereas a conservative school may favor sports. There are differences between the policies that govern the schools which may tend more in one direction than another.

Social spending/taxes

This is whereas they say, the rubber meets the road. One of the differences between for example California one of the most liberal states and Mississippi the most conservative state is public spending. Mississippi has a part-time legislature. This means that they spend far less per capita than California does to support a full-time legislature. A full-time legislature will typically pass more legislation.

More money on a per capita basis in California goes to welfare and similar entitlements than in Mississippi. If you want to be paid unemployment benefits in Mississippi you need to prove you are actively looking. California has lots of loopholes for this and is more relaxed regarding enforcement. Nevada for example gives out EBT cards to single working-age men. Mississippi will do this for about 30 days then the single person must be employed.

All of the above are policies that make a state or area more or less liberal or conservative. Tax rates are usually higher in liberal states to fund social initiatives. The top sales state tax in CA is 13% whereas the highest-paid in Mississippi is 5%. There are other taxes as well including some that cities charge in addition to state and federal.

Crime

Crime is not unique to any area, there is always crime even when it involves a domestic dispute. Are you living in an area that has been hit with waves of riots or demonstrations? Can you leave your car unlocked in your driveway at night? Are there gangs around the area? Does your state law release offenders or give them a ticket?

Sure, you may have been the victim of a crime e.g. someone stole your purse from a parked car in a shopping center. If this type of occurrence is occasional and not a daily occurrence then you are living in our new society. Should you be in fear of having your home broken into during daylight or becoming the victim of a drive-by shooting, you need to relocate.

Dig into the crime stats

Look for an area with a reasonable crime rate. Dig into the statistics. A bar fight is not likely to affect you or your children. A teenager stealing a candy bar again is not that serious. Look for a serious crime. While you are looking notice the areas. If the location you are considering is 10 miles from a “bad” area and most of the crime seems to be centered there, perhaps it’s worth considering. I lived near Portland, OR years ago well before the riots have made some of the area uninhabitable.

I know that there are communities around Portland that do not have the same crime issues but you have to ask yourself if you want to live in an area where elected officials and bureaucrats permit this activity as defacto.

Thinking of leaving?

Coming full circle about the topic of this blog article. Are you one of those who are thinking that the political environment has become unsustainable for you? It seems that the decision to relocate is based upon people’s deep-seated beliefs. When you become uncomfortable and you believe that there is nothing you can do, start planning.

As I mentioned above it is not enough to find a community that you believe will be a good fit now but it will still be in our years. Is the target community evolving in the right direction? Where are new residents coming from? Selling your house and buying in a new community is a serious task. How about an area that many believe is balanced? I mean where people are not persecuted for their political beliefs and there are no riots or damaging demonstrations.

A place where conservatives interact with gay people. Where art and culture are enjoyed by everyone. Politics are discussed but not to the point of confrontation. This series of comments I found to be interesting and largely accurate about the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

Many of my articles gravitate to the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

Sorry, many of my articles tend to gravitate to the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The main reason is that I have been part of the migration. Before my wife and I left California (where I was born), we gave a great deal of thought about leaving the state. It seems that the crazies are running around that state more so than when we left. If you live there and many of our friends and relatives do, we wish you well. We found exactly what we were looking for and almost by accident.

We started by looking in Florida (part of the heard). For a variety of reasons, we choose Ocean Springs on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Read this article about what we have found. If you have a little more time read our story about leaving California here.

By the way, we did don’t follow anyone here to Mississippi. We have never known anyone who lived in Mississippi before we moved here. What I did know is that common wisdom about areas held by people who have never been there is usually wrong. Mississippi has been used by many as a place that is racist, backward (no flushing toilets), poor, uneducated, no paved roads, etc. All of this I knew to be wrong before we arrived.

If it were not for this bad information being passed around, the Mississippi Gulf Coast would look like Austin or Denver. Crowded, overtaxed and, still growing. We love our little corner of the country and we are only inviting those who read this blog to come here 🙂

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