Public Opinion

Gallup generally finds that independent voter ID falls between 40 to 50 percent of the electorate. However, 4 months out from November, the latest numbers show 51% of Americans now identify as independent of the two major parties. 

A Harvard CAPS / Harris poll in May found that 71% of Americans want an independent or third-party candidate on the presidential debate stage. Yet, the rules for CNN's June 27 debate were set up to never allow more than two.

Bloomberg editor and author Frank Barry bought an RV and drove across the Lincoln Highway, the first transcontinental highway to connect the coasts, to explore the diverse landscape and people of the United States. 

For the first time in decades, an independent presidential candidate has caught up to one of the two establishment parties in a statewide poll.

Gallup has found that even as the US gets closer to November, the percentage of Americans that identify as independent has remained unchanged – at around 45%

US voters are largely unhappy with the options the two major parties have given them in the 2024 presidential election. While Hillary Clinton says these voters need to get over themselves, Pew Research has found that she is talking to most of the country.

Photo by Hannah Busing on Unsplash

 

Party leaders, politicians, and media pundits and talking heads would have US voters believe that the American public has never been more divided. This narrative is especially prominent in presidential election years. 

The South Carolina Republican presidential primary is scheduled for Saturday, February 24. It's an open primary, meaning any registered state voter can participate as long as they did not vote in the February 3 Democratic presidential primary.

As the US kicks off the 2024 presidential election cycle, more than 23.5 million registered independent voters find themselves sidelined by closed presidential primaries in 22 states, a recent report from the Unite America Institute reveals.

1. You See the Legitimacy of Opposing Views

Voters have become accustomed to the simple red-versus-blue, liberal-versus-conservative goal posts that have been set up by the drivers of American politics. Hyper-polarization has reached such extremes that no matter the position, the "other side" is always wrong, evil, and brainwashed.