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The political independence of me and thee

A reader passes along this story from USA Today. Excerpt: WASHINGTON – More than 2.5 million voters have left the Democratic and Republican parties since the 2008 elections, while the number of independent voters continues to grow. A USA TODAY analysis of state voter registration statistics shows registered Democrats declined in 25 of the 28 […]

A reader passes along this story from USA Today. Excerpt:

WASHINGTON – More than 2.5 million voters have left the Democratic and Republican parties since the 2008 elections, while the number of independent voters continues to grow.

A USA TODAY analysis of state voter registration statistics shows registered Democrats declined in 25 of the 28 states that register voters by party. Republicans dipped in 21 states, while independents increased in 18 states.

The trend is acute in states that are key to next year’s presidential race. In the eight swing states that register voters by party, Democrats’ registration is down by 800,000 and Republicans’ by 350,000. Independents have gained 325,000

This week, the Republican Party lost one member, and the Independents gained one: me. I’ve been a registered Republican nearly all my adult life, but when I registered here in Louisiana, I put down “Independent.” I’m a conservative, for sure, and expect to vote Republican most of the time, by default. But I don’t want to be formally affiliated with that bunch, and I consider myself more open to considering Democratic candidates than I have been.

The reader who sent this to me — sorry, L., but I don’t know if you want to be identified, so I err on the side of caution — adds:

I wonder if there are parallels to folks leaving (or not caring about) organized religion in droves. I suspect there are. I also suspect here that there’s an opportunity for a remaking of the political landscape over the next decade or so.

An interesting thought. What do you think, readers?

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