CNN poll: Political independents hit their highest level in a decade [View all]

[everyonematters]

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Source: CNN

Nearly half of Americans say they don’t consider themselves a part of either major political party, the highest level of partisan independence measured by CNN polling in more than a decade.

Independents have grown to 47% of the population, rising roughly 10 points since just after President Donald Trump’s first term as president, according to CNN polling. Over the last 20 years, CNN polling found independent identification peaked in 2015 at just a shade higher than it is today: 48% of Americans on average across all CNN polling that year were independents.

Democrats and Republicans split the remainder of the population in the new poll, with 27% of Americans identifying as Democrats and 26% as Republicans. Many independents do still lean toward one party or the other, and with those leaners included, 39% of Americans align more with Democrats, 37% with Republicans, and 25% say they don’t lean either way. In a further sign of just how evenly divided American politics is today, when those who don’t lean are pushed to choose a side, they also split almost evenly.

Neither party has held a meaningful advantage in overall identification in CNN’s benchmarking polls since 2021, when Democrats held a 6-point edge over Republicans. Since then, the parties have been separated by just 1 point in each year of CNN’s tracking.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/16/politics/cnn-poll-political-parties-independent-democrats-republicans

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This represents a challenge to the Democratic Party, since voters are gravitating towards independent rather than Democrats with Trump's low approval ratings. Polls show Democrats winning independents by double digits, but many are still undecided or saying they will not vote. If the Democrats win Congress in the midterm election, they need to show that they are going to make a difference in their lives. This means putting forward economic policies that go beyond just repealing Trump's economic policies, policies that address growing and strengthening the middle class.