The Red and Blue States That Select the Same Halloween Candy

When it comes to Halloween candy, there is less of a red and blue state divide. Among the states that agree, the people in New Jersey (blue) and Tennessee (red) prefer Tootsie Pops. For Illinois (blue) and Nebraska (red), Sour Patch Kids are the favorite.

Halloween Candy

State Preferences

We could say that Skittles, Reese’s Cups, and Candy Corn unite us. A slew of red and blue states placed all three in their top three:

The National Top 10

For the 2020 Top Ten, Skittles is #1 and Reese’s Cups, #2. Meanwhile, since last year, Starburst moved up two spots to #3, Jolly Ranchers joined the list, and Tootsie Pops left.

This is the whole 2020 list:

And these were the 2019 Halloween candy favorites:

The Worst

Based on a survey of 20,000 of its own customers, CandyStore created a worst list. I can’t quite figure out the Candy Corn situation. It seems to be loved and hated:

Our Bottom Line: Halloween Spending

For economists, Halloween spending is about more than candy. It takes us to the consumption component of the GDP. While consumption has been estimated at 70 percent of the GDP, not all economists agree that the proportion is that large. But it is much more than the government, gross investment, and net exports segments of the GDP.

Through our Halloween spending, each of us might have added an average of $92.12 to the GDP. However, I wonder if we ready wound up spending more than last year:

Because of COVID-19, we are buying less candy for fewer trick or treaters. According to the National Retail Federation, the amount could have been $2.4 billion, down from last year’s $2.6 billion. Meanwhile, at $8.05 billion, the total spending projection for Halloween is also slightly less than last year.

Below you can see where we probably allocated our Halloween dollars. Most of us were neither dressing up our pets nor visiting haunted houses:

Out of the $92.12 or so that the average Halloween shopper spends, close to $27.55 will go to candy:

I guess we are spending a lot on Skittles.

My sources and more: For my top ten candy lists, it was the most fun to see each state’s candy preference at CandyStore.com and to ponder the broader significance. Then, I checked the National Retail Federation website for more facts than you ever wanted to know about Halloween candy. And finally, 270towin had a map for the red and blue states.

Our featured image is from candystore.com.