Americans Are Increasingly Rejecting the Two Major Political Parties

Just under half of U.S. adults now identify as independents, according to new Gallup polling.

Forty-five percent don't identify with Democrats or Republicans. That's a substantial shift from 20 years ago, when closer to one-third of Americans said they were independents.

This group appears increasingly driven by their unhappiness with the party in power, according to Gallup's analysis. This could be good for Democrats in this year's midterm elections but doesn't promise lasting loyalty.

Independents have gravitated toward Democrats over the past year when asked which party they lean toward, Gallup found. But attitudes toward the party haven't gotten warmer. This suggests the Democrats' gains are probably more about independents' increasingly sour views of President Donald Trump.

Young People Are Leading the Charge

Younger people are rejecting the parties at much higher rates than older generations.

More than half of Generation Z and Millennials identify as political independents, while a majority of older generations side with a party. That's different from the past, when more young adults identified with Democrats or Republicans.

This is part of the reason why frequent, dramatic swings in political power may become increasingly normal.

Democrats Currently Have the Edge

Independents have long been the largest political group in the U.S. Their numbers have increased over the last 15 years. But often they're more inclined to side with one party over the other.

This year, the Democratic Party gained the edge when independents were asked whether they lean more toward Democrats or Republicans. Nearly half, 47%, of U.S. adults now identify as Democrats or lean that way, while 42% are Republicans or lean Republican.

This shifted the 3-year party affiliation advantage Republicans held while President Joe Biden was in office, reverting to where Democrats stood during Trump's first term.

This is not necessarily bad news for Democrats as they look to regain one or both houses of Congress in November. But they're likelier benefiting from independents' unhappiness with Trump rather than building lasting goodwill for themselves. Trump's approval among independents has fallen steadily over the year, while Democrats' favorability remains historically low.

Young Adults Drive the Trend

Younger Americans are driving the recent rise in adults identifying as independents.

Gallup polling found majorities of Gen Z and Millennial adults—born between 1981 and 2007—now identify as independents. Independent identity is softer in older generations. Only about 4 in 10 Gen X adults currently call themselves independents and roughly 3 in 10 older adults do.

Young adults today are more likely than previous generations to identify outside the two major parties. While 56% of Gen Z adults call themselves independents, that's higher than 2012, when 47% of Millennials said they were independents. In 1992, 40% of Gen X adults identified that way.

This means this trend isn't likely to shift unless the parties change the way younger people see them.

Independents Are Increasingly Moderate

Americans who identify as moderates increasingly don't see themselves in either party.

More independents have described their political views as "moderate" over the last decade, while Democrats and Republicans have grown less likely to identify as moderates.

About half of independents, 47%, called themselves moderates in 2025, compared to about 3 in 10 Democrats and about 2 in 10 Republicans.

At the same time, Democrats and Republicans have become increasingly polarized. About 6 in 10 Democrats now call themselves liberal, while the share that considers themselves moderate is among the lowest it's ever been. Among Republicans, 77% consider themselves conservative. Moderate identity is also at a low point.

This creates another challenge for the parties to contend with. Appeals to the center to win the growing pool of independents could risk alienating the most committed people in their base.

What It Boils Down To

Nearly half of Americans now reject both major political parties. That number's been climbing steadily for two decades. Young people are driving this shift.

Democrats currently have a slight advantage when independents are asked which way they lean. But that advantage seems more about disliking Trump than genuinely supporting Democrats.

The growing pool of independents increasingly identifies as moderate. Meanwhile both parties have become more ideologically extreme. Fewer Democrats identify as moderate than ever before. Same with Republicans.

That creates a problem. Parties need to appeal to moderate independents to win elections. But doing so risks alienating their increasingly extreme bases.

The two-party system isn't going anywhere. But its grip on American voters is clearly weakening, especially among the generations that will define politics for the next several decades.

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