Where Does South Dakota Rank among the Best States for Women’s Equality?

When it comes to bridging the gap between men and women in areas like the workplace, education and health, and politics, South Dakota is among the bottom third places in America.

To compile an equality ranking of all 50 states, WalletHub looked at data from a number of sources, including:

• U.S. Census Bureau
• Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
• National Women's Law Center
• Institute for Women's Policy Research
• National Center for Education Statistics
• Centers for Disease Control & Prevention
• Center for American Women and Politics

The numbers showed that South Dakota is 35th overall.

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The state scored near the bottom ten (39th) in the workplace environment category, which factors in wages, executive positions, and work hours.

Despite being one of only nine states with a female governor, the Mount Rushmore State was also 39th in political empowerment, which measures disparities in the share of lawmakers in the U.S. Senate, as well as the State Legislature, while looking at the number of State-Elected Executives.

Overall, Nevada leads the way for equality among all 50 states, thanks to the top political empowerment ranking in the country and the third-best score in the workplace environment.

BEST STATES FOR WOMEN'S EQUALITY (WalletHub)

1. Nevada
2. Hawaii
3. Vermont
4. Maine
5. New York
6. California
7. Iowa
8. West Virginia
9. Michigan
10. Massachusetts

As for the states that still have the biggest disparities between men and women, Utah is the worst thanks to a ranking of 49 in political empowerment and 50 in education and health.

Utah also has the largest educational attainment gap and largest work hours gap between men and women in America.

WORST STATES FOR WOMEN'S EQUALITY (WalletHub)

1. Utah
2. Idaho
3. Texas
4. South Carolina
5. Kansas
6. Georgia
7. Alabama
8. Oklahoma
9. Virginia
10. Louisiana