It’s a common misconception, but if you registered “Independent Party” you aren’t “independent” you are a member of your state’s Independent party, who has a platform and agenda you may or may not agree with. What you actually want is called an “unaffiliated” voter status. The good news is, all you have to do is…nothing!

LA Times had a good summary a few years back: https://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-ca-american-independent-party-california-registration-card-20180405-story.html

You don’t need to register with any party to show you don’t like R or D, do nothing or choose "unaffiliated if you want to be “little i independent”.

Examples:

#USA #politics----

  • ramble81@lemm.ee
    17·
    18 days ago

    In Texas you must register with a party to vote in their primary. Now that doesn’t mean you have to vote for them in the general election. Quite often I’ve registered Republican to try and influence the primary since I’ll vote for whichever Democrat makes it past the primary.

    • rjthyen@lemm.ee
      7·
      18 days ago

      I’ve been considering changing my registration to Republican specifically for primaries. I’m in SD, and the Republican almost always wins so I feel I’d have more impact trying to push the right left and can still vote however I want in the general.

        • rjthyen@lemm.ee
          1·
          15 days ago

          I would be voting for the better GOP candidate in the primary hoping they win, and likely the Dem come general election, but since I’m in a red area I’d expect the Dem to lose but maybe help pick the lesser of two evils for the GOP?

            • rjthyen@lemm.ee
              1·
              14 days ago

              If you lived somewhere where the GOP candidate is going to get 65 percent of the vote basically no matter what, and in the GOP primary you had an incumbent, somewhat average, right wing conservative that you’ve seen work across the aisle in the state legislator ruining against a hard core maga nut job, anti vaccine, anti public schools, openly racist etc. Do you think registering as a Republican to vote for the incumbent in that primary sounds like an okay idea? You can still vote for the Democrat and make your voice heard there at the general election even though it’s essentially guaranteed he loses.

              Or is the argument against this that if the crazy maga guy wins the primary there’s a slightly better chance the Democrat can win? I’d call it unlikely where I’m at, but could see tighter districts working that way.

              • PeggyLouBaldwin@lemmy.world
                1·
                14 days ago

                if i elect an average right wing conservative (which is redundant) and they go on to do bad things, which is practically guaranteed, I would not feel better.

      • ramble81@lemm.ee
        3·
        17 days ago

        Don’t suppose you read your own link….

        31. (§162.010). A voter who has affiliated themselves with a party is ineligible to participate in the party affairs of another party during the same calendar year. (§§162.012, 162.013)

        Yes you can flip every year but you have to chose a party to vote in their primary. That’s what I said.

    • jeffw@lemmy.world
      6·
      18 days ago

      That’s called a closed primary. Many states have open primaries but many are still closed

    • Reyali@lemm.ee
      1·
      17 days ago

      Similarly, North Carolina allows unaffiliated to choose their primary, but R and D must vote in their registered primaries. Definitely good to know your state’s laws before taking OP at face value!