For decades, independents have made up a larger share of the electorate than Democrats or Republicans, and in recent years, this number has grown even larger. According to Gallup, they now make up about 40 percent of voters. But despite those figures, most independents are actually loyal to one party or the other.
In this installment of the FiveThirtyEight Politics podcast, the crew discusses why the number of independents has been growing and what it means for our politics. They also ask why support for gun control measures hasn’t translated into new laws and look at steps the Pew Research Center is taking to ensure their panel surveys include a representative sample of Republicans.
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