Frequent and Regular (grants more than 30% of applications) (16):
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- California *
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Georgia
- Idaho
- Illinois*
- Iowa
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- Oklahoma
- Pennsylvania
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Virginia *
Sparing (process regular, grants small percentage of applications) (8)
- Florida
- Hawaii
- Indiana
- Maryland
- Minnesota
- Texas
- Washington
- Wyoming
Infrequent/Uneven (pardoning depends on incumbent governor) (5)
- Louisiana
- Maine
- New Mexico
- Ohio
- Wisconsin
Infrequent/Rare (few/no pardons in past 20 years) (23)
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Colorado
- District of Columbia
- Federal system
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Massachusetts
- Michigan**
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New York**
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Oregon
- Rhode Island
- Tennessee
- Utah
- Vermont
- West Virginia
Notes
* Illinois remains on the “Frequent and Regular” list despite the fact that the incumbent governor has been sparing in his grants compared to his predecessor, because of the regularity of the pardon process. California and Virginia make it because of a resumption of regular pardoning by their current governors, even though in California only a small percentage of those who apply are granted.
** Michigan and New York make the “Infrequent/Rare” list despite some interest in pardoning by one recent governor
