Millions of Americans today are attracted to the independent label. Parties have a bad reputation—both major parties are viewed unfavorably by a majority of Americans—and there’s something appealing about the idea of thinking independently rather than blindly supporting a party. But in fact, the large majority of independents are “closet partisans” who consistently support only one party’s candidates. They call themselves independents and many of them register as independents when given an opportunity, but they vote like partisans. That was certainly true in the last election cycle.
(Politico Magazine, “The Partisans in the Closet“)
