Mass Effect: Favorite & Least Favorite Alien Races?

I didn't pick the turians. I like Garrus but not so into a militaristic race. I chose humans because I do generally favor them in the game. Salarians, despite the dalatrass, because of STG, Mordin, Kirrahe, Wiks, and the willingness of the STG to break with the government regarding fighting in the Reaper War. Elcor, because they're friendly and positive.

I actually didn't even think to pick humans, because when I saw 'ME races', I thought aliens. But, I guess the fact that I would have no desire to play as anything but human makes them a technical favorite? Still, I think it's odd to even include them because it's not like they're a species created specifically for the game. All the devs had to do was copy what we look and act like in real life. There's no creature design or conceptualization required beyond getting them into the game universe. So, taking that into consideration, I still wouldn't consider them a favorite - just a convenient lens through which to experience the others.

Why The Hate On Quarians?

I like them well enough, I just got more than my fill during the original trilogy. They were Weekes' pet race, and Tali his pet character/waifu, leading him to bend the story to accommodate Tali fan-service. This, combined with BSN's disproportionate quarian love, turns me off slightly. I cast my votes in an effort to keep quarians from landing in the top 2 or 3. I was partially successful, which is better than I'd honestly hoped.

Also, someone has to balance out Xen. It's not easy, so some people take turns...

I've just seen several of them in different time on different sites. Sometimes krogans win over quarians (phases of the Moon, idk), but overall they are pretty similiar.
BTW Quarians tend to gather a lot of negative votes comparing to other main species of the trilogy. Won't be drawing any conclusions about it right now.

I just wish that the Krogan would have been sidelined for this game like the Quarians seem to have been. They were already one of the major focuses of the previous trilogy, no point in dragging them back into the spotlight for the new game. Doubly so if all we are going to do with the battle toads is retread old ground with the Genophage and worring about "mah Krogan babies!".

Now I feel ashamed of myself for the votes I cast. Well, except for the batarians; I liked them all.

But yeah, Thane is my main reason for liking drell, and his beliefs contradict a lot of other drell's beliefs (body/soul and taking or not taking responsibility for one's actions). For example, on Ilium's News Network, the drell that live there (indentured servants?) were outraged that their heritage was being related to Thane's exceptional assassination skills. They do not hold assassins in high regard. And honestly, neither did Irikah, his wife. I guess not all drell minds work differently than human minds. The asari had to apologize for making the comparison. I assume Thane's beliefs about his freelance assassinations and not having to take responsibility for any of his freelance killings (it's his employer's fault he sought them out for paid wetwork) were a result of long-term hanar brainwashing of drell child soldiers in their service, not of a unique way in which drell minds work.

I just wish we got to meet more drell instead of 3. I was hoping to go to Rakhana and meet an Immortan Joe drell and Furiosa drell on their Mad Max-world. I don't even know if that's how their world is. I have to make it up because I know so little about them as a species. 

People are certainly conflating characters with races.
I'm not immune. I should dislike the asari as a race (arrogant, fan service space babes who'll have sex with anyone) but like them because the asari we meet are great characters (Liara, Samara, Tela Vasir, Shiala, Aria, Benezia).
I've also got a soft spot for the batarians based on the few we meet, mainly Aria's goons in ME2 and the Omega DLC. They come across as practical, world weary and unflappable.
And I always saw quarians as the ME version of medieval Jews. Wanderers with no homeland that nobody likes because of some perceived error in their past. Throw in their ludicrously inept decision making and it's no wonder they've got no friends.

Now I have an image of a fantastically wealthy hanar flanked by his two drell bodyguards. 

Visiting Rakhana could be pretty impactful, if they ever made a game in which it would fit. Serious stories aren't really BioWare's strength, but I'd likely really enjoy a grittier tour of ME's Milky Way. Rakhana would probably feel a bit like The Last of Us with a drell cast. There has to be a more arid world to which they could be relocated. (I hear the geth will let practically anyone live on Rannoch, these days!  I jest. It's dextro, anyway.) The fact that the Council never intervened implies that they either feel it's not their problem, it's too big a problem, or it's too late.

Me too.  Frankly, I find the Quarians to be a deplorable race as a whole, specifically regarding their treatment of the Geth and the fact that they didn't learn a thing from past mistakes.

Tali is good though, but her weakest moments are when she's being anti-Geth.