The start of my Many Americas series, done in the Equal Earth projection. My goal is to generate a large number of unique, semi-realistic successor states to America. The POD is always after 1945, and the current year is in the late 2000s / early 2100s.
As usual, this is entertainment, I don't endorse any ideologies here, so don't take it too seriously.
1.
United States of America. This THICC America comes from a world where the 1990s neoliberals won (permanently), and the 3 North American powers moved further and further towards unity. Sure, there were rebels (Quebec and South Mexico), but they inadvertently speeded up the process. With the Left-leaning South Mexico gone, El Norte became more and more enmeshed with America, and eventually acceded. With Quebec cutting off the Maritimes from Canada proper, they almost begged America for accession. By 2100, this America has 650 million people (courtesy of liberalized immigration), is exceptionally stable and wealthy, and is the world's greatest power.
2.
American Free State. The last one is a tough act to follow, and this guy looks moth-eaten in comparison. This state comes from a world in which the political malaise of the 1970s never ended, and America entered a new era of political polarization rather than the centrist-technocrat consensus we got in OTL. White nationalist groups burgeoned throughout the Rust Belt and Dixie, metastasized through the government and bureaucracy, and overthrew the state in a 2030s crisis. Of course, not all the country was on board with this, and numerous states and counties seceded, with the Southwest acceding to Mexico. The newly-declared American Free State secured Chicago and Detroit through hardball negotiations, and an advantageous position for the partition of the South with New Afrika. Unfortunately, while it had been very adept at gaining power, it was commensurately bad at using it. It went full bore on protectionism and statism, with some forays into neo-luddism. Its government resembles OTL Pakistan more than anything else, and xenophobia and saber-rattling substitute for political discourse. Not a very nice place to live overall.
3.
Socialist Republic of America. In this world, the Soviet Union fell early (1970s), and the American anti-communist consensus fell along with it. Globalization and automation continued apace, but the neoliberal juggernaut met a very unexpected opponent: one with a red flag. The mofussils of the Rust Belt and Black Belt alike produced masses of socialists, though the ideology didn't win many fans in areas dominated by agriculture or the service sector (eg the trans-Mississippi, Eastern Seaboard, South Florida.) In the 2050s, combined with other fissiparous movements, the Socialist Republic of America broke free. It has returned various industries to its land, though in terms of wealth it can't hold a candle to its neighbors on the Eastern Seaboard. Still, it has created an impressive amount of interracial solidarity and harmony. Interestingly though, its citizens are generally religious and communitarian in temperament, and not the daring bohemians people expect socialists to be.
4.
California. In this world, the populists won the war on the Right, but the demographic and cultural trends of California continued to set it apart from the nation, and this eventually triggered fissiparous tendencies among the Californians (and other West Coasters). As the government grew increasingly sclerotic and ineffectual, California broke free by the 2040s and cemented its liberal-multiracial identity. By 2100, California is quite wealthy and populous, but it is also a stratified and indeed almost neo-feudal society.
5.
New Afrika. In this world, the Civil Rights Movement died out before it could gain much steam, but it later re-emerged as a more intransigent and militant entity. As America slowly went from a triumphant juggernaut to declining, polarized, sclerotic has-been over the 21st century, the Black nationalists gained ground by supplanting an apathetic state throughout the South. They secured an advantageous position for the eventual dissolution in the 2070s. Their state operates as a "Black Israel" in many respects, and while poor, it is stable and relatively harmonious.
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That's about it for now, but more American successors are coming! Let me know if you guys have any ideas.
