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WHO ARE INDEPENDENTS?
How Many Voters Are Independent or Unaffiliated in Maryland?
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As of November 2024, almost 22% of all registered voters in Maryland were unaffiliated with any political party. See Voter Registration Statistics.
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In Montgomery and Anne Arundel counties, the percentage is even higher—24% of voters are unaffiliated.
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Many other Marylanders identify as Independent but register as Democrat or Republican to participate in Maryland's closed primary elections.
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The trend is growing: in 2023, 32% of Maryland's new voters registered as unaffiliated.
Who Are Independent Voters?
Nationally, according to Gallup (2016):
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30% of African Americans
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41% of Latinos
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43% of Asians
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44% of Millennials
consider themselves Independent.
Why Do Voters Choose to Be Independent or Unaffiliated?
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A 2018 survey by Independent Voting (including 118 Maryland voters) found:
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Two-thirds said they were unaffiliated because they believed the two major parties prioritized party interests over the people's interests.
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More than half said they wanted to vote for the person, not the party.
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42% felt that neither Democrats nor Republicans represented them.
Many Independents feel disenfranchised because unaffiliated voters are excluded from Maryland’s primary elections—where critical candidate selections happen.
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This exclusion leads to frustration and lower participation rates among unaffiliated voters in general elections.
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As one Independent put it:
"The major parties don't want those outside their party choosing their candidate, but they sure as heck want you to vote for their candidate in the general election."
​Why Don't Independents Just Affiliate with a Party?
Some do, temporarily, just to vote. However, 943,624 Maryland voters chose to remain unaffiliated as of November 2024.
Reasons include:
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A belief that voting should not require party affiliation.
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A desire for independence from party control.
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A commitment to broader representation.
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A belief that it makes government work better.
What Has Been Done to Change This?
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In 2019, several bills were introduced in Maryland's General Assembly to open the primaries to Independents or allow same-day party affiliation changes.
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As we prepared testimony, our survey showed:
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About half of Independents would affiliate temporarily to vote.
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The other half would refuse to affiliate even temporarily, asserting:
"We shouldn't have to affiliate with any party in order to exercise our right to vote!"
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Unfortunately, none of these bills made it out of committee.
Legislators expressed reluctance to invest in appealing to Independent voters, reflecting research showing:-
Candidates in closed primaries are less responsive to unaffiliated constituents.
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Closed primaries contribute to partisan polarization.
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What Do Maryland Independents Want?
According to our 2018 survey:
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78% believe that Democratic and Republican parties should open presidential primaries to unaffiliated voters.