Democratic policies, high taxes, massive illegal immigration, skyrocketing costs, and declining education or increased rules and regulations related to education, and escalating crime, are some of the reasons that roughly 450,000 Americans left their homes in the blue states of New York, California, and Illinois.

The greatest number left New York according to the U.S. Census Bureau: roughly 190,000 people left the state between July 1, 2016, and July 1, 2017, consistent with the number of people who left during the same time period in the previous year. According to the Empire Center, roughly 1 million people leaving New York every year since 2010 exceeds the number of people leaving any other state in the union, both in absolute numbers and as a share of the population. (New York’s population actually increased, however, because of two factors: high levels of “international immigrants” (illegal immigrants) and the number of births was higher than deaths.

The second greatest number left California, trailing those in New York by about 60,000 residents. Roughly 138,000 Californians left the state during the same time-period. Similar to New York, despite natives leaving, California’s population grew by a staggering 240,000 people.

How is this possible? Because of illegal immigration. California received more “international migrants” than any other state, making its net migration 27,000. This number, combined with a greater number of births than deaths, accounted for the surge in its population.

Finally, in Illinois, roughly 115,000 residents left between July, 2016 and July, 2017. According to the Illinois Policy Institute, Illinois lost roughly 650,000 residents since 2010 in terms of net numbers, equivalent to the population of its four largest cities (excluding Chicago).

Because Illinois lost a significant portion of its tax base, it is facing the “worst pension crisis in the nation.” In response to this crisis, the Democratic legislature raised taxes, which actually caused more people to leave. Its decline began in 2012, and, as Orphe Divounguy, the Illinois Policy Institute’s chief economist, told the Chicago Tribune:

As people leave the state, they take their pocketbooks with them. That means there are fewer Illinoisans to pay the bills. It’s worrying because if you have a declining population and a declining labor force, you will for sure have a further slowdown of economic activity going into 2018.

The Daily Signal points out that according to the Tax Foundation, these three states are among the top five states with the highest tax rates (as a percentage of per capita income). New Yorkers pay 12.7 percent, and California and Illinois, eleven. The newly passed tax law, which caps tax deductions, could make next year’s exodus worse.