React hooks useState Array

You should not set state (or do anything else with side effects) from within the rendering function. When using hooks, you can use useEffect for this.

The following version works:

import React, { useState, useEffect } from "react";
import ReactDOM from "react-dom";

const StateSelector = () => {
  const initialValue = [
    { id: 0, value: " --- Select a State ---" }];

  const allowedState = [
    { id: 1, value: "Alabama" },
    { id: 2, value: "Georgia" },
    { id: 3, value: "Tennessee" }
  ];

  const [stateOptions, setStateValues] = useState(initialValue);
  // initialValue.push(...allowedState);

  console.log(initialValue.length);
  // ****** BEGINNING OF CHANGE ******
  useEffect(() => {
    // Should not ever set state during rendering, so do this in useEffect instead.
    setStateValues(allowedState);
  }, []);
  // ****** END OF CHANGE ******

  return (<div>
    <label>Select a State:</label>
    <select>
      {stateOptions.map((localState, index) => (
        <option key={localState.id}>{localState.value}</option>
      ))}
    </select>
  </div>);
};

const rootElement = document.getElementById("root");
ReactDOM.render(<StateSelector />, rootElement);

and here it is in a code sandbox.

I'm assuming that you want to eventually load the list of states from some dynamic source (otherwise you could just use allowedState directly without using useState at all). If so, that api call to load the list could also go inside the useEffect block.

Try to keep your state minimal. There is no need to store

   const initialValue = [
    { id: 0,value: " --- Select a State ---" }];

as state. Separate the permanent from the changing

const ALL_STATE_VALS = [
    { id: 0,value: " --- Select a State ---" }
    { id: 1, value: "Alabama" },
    { id: 2, value: "Georgia" },
    { id: 3, value: "Tennessee" }
];

Then you can store just the id as your state:

const StateSelector = () =>{
  const [selectedStateOption, setselectedStateOption] = useState(0);

  return (
    <div>
      <label>Select a State:</label>
      <select>
        {ALL_STATE_VALS.map((option, index) => (
          <option key={option.id} selected={index===selectedStateOption}>{option.value}</option>
        ))}
      </select>
    </div>);
   )
}

The accepted answer shows the correct way to setState but it does not lead to a well functioning select box.

import React, { useState } from "react"; 
import ReactDOM from "react-dom";

const initialValue = { id: 0,value: " --- Select a State ---" };

const options = [
    { id: 1, value: "Alabama" },
    { id: 2, value: "Georgia" },
    { id: 3, value: "Tennessee" }
];

const StateSelector = () => {   
   const [ selected, setSelected ] = useState(initialValue);  

     return (
       <div>
          <label>Select a State:</label>
          <select value={selected}>
            {selected === initialValue && 
                <option disabled value={initialValue}>{initialValue.value}</option>}
            {options.map((localState, index) => (
               <option key={localState.id} value={localState}>
                   {localState.value}
               </option>
             ))}
          </select>
        </div>
      ); 
};

const rootElement = document.getElementById("root");
ReactDOM.render(<StateSelector />, rootElement);