The eight states (and the one that became nine)
TIME magazine's reporting, picked up by NBC and Newsweek, identified at least eight states whose governors' offices confirmed they would not be sending official state delegations to the Great American State Fair:
Massachusetts — Gov. Maura Healey's office confirmed non-attendance to TIME but declined to provide a reason.
Illinois — declined to participate.
Connecticut — officials said the state chose to focus its resources on local celebrations.
North Carolina — opted out citing budget concerns ($100,000 exhibition cost).
Maine — opted out.
Oregon — Gov. Tina Kotek's office confirmed non-participation, citing the state's own America 250 Oregon Commission programming.
Washington — opted out.
Pennsylvania — opted out.
Other states have since declined to participate, bringing the total to nine per Carolina Journal's subsequent reporting.
The reasons states gave (where stated)
The states' stated reasons broke down into roughly three categories:
Budget/cost concerns. North Carolina's spokesperson Michele Walker told NOTUS the state "decided early in the process that we do not have the capacity to participate" given the $100,000 exhibition cost.
Already running their own state-level America 250 programming. Oregon cited its existing America 250 Oregon Commission. "The Governor will still be proudly celebrating America's semiquincentennial here in Oregon." Connecticut took a similar position.
No reason stated. Massachusetts' Governor Healey's office confirmed non-attendance to TIME but declined to provide a reason.
The pattern in the list
All eight states identified by TIME — Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Maine, Oregon, Washington, Pennsylvania — have Democratic governors as of 2026. This is not coincidence: states with Republican governors largely participated in the fair. North Carolina is the only state in the list with a Democratic governor whose office cited cost rather than political concerns.
Whether the pattern reflects partisan opt-outs explicitly or partisan budget priorities implicitly is a question the states themselves answered differently.
How states are being represented anyway
In some opted-out states, private organizations stepped in to ensure representation at the fair. Carolina Journal reported the North Carolina example in detail:
Richard Childress Racing, SPEVCO, and a nonprofit organization organized a North Carolina pavilion despite the state's official non-participation. The theme — "Spirit of North Carolina: First in Flight, Fast on the Track, Strong in the Storm" — features the Wright brothers' historic first flight, the state's racing heritage with the #3 NASCAR car, and the state's response to Hurricane Helene.
The Carolina Journal piece quoted Sen. W. Ted Alexander, co-chair of North Carolina's America 250th Committee: "I am glad that Richard Childress Racing and SPEVCO and another nonprofit have stepped up to the plate to represent North Carolina there. While I'm still disappointed our official state didn't do it, I'm glad that we will have representation."
The organizer position
The Freedom 250 spokesperson position, as quoted in TIME: "Whether represented by a governor's office, a tourism board, or a beloved state company or organization, every community will be celebrated, and every American will see themselves in this once-in-a-generation event."
The fair has positioned the private-replacement approach as proof that every state is represented in some form — even if not all governments have signed on.
The political read
The list of states opting out mirrors the broader 2024-2026 political map. States with Democratic-leaning state governments are the ones declining. The reason categories — budget, prior commitments, no stated reason — give political cover, but the pattern speaks to a broader hesitation about the event's perceived partisan associations.
See also: the artists who withdrew from the music lineup — a parallel pattern of public distancing from Freedom 250 programming.