On March 9, Rep. Kevin Kiley, who represents California's 3rd Congressional District, announced that he was immediately changing his party affiliation from Republican to independent. His decision means Republicans now have a 217-214 majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, with three vacancies. Kiley is the sole independent in the chamber.
Although Kiley has changed his party affiliation to independent, he said he will caucus with Republicans until Jan. 3, 2027 — the end of the 119th Congress. On who he will caucus with if he wins re-election, Kiley said he will "do whatever is serves my constituents and so you know that's a decision that I'll make at the time."
Kiley's announcement came after he filed for re-election on March 6 with no party affiliation. Voters elected Kiley to represent California's 3rd Congressional District in 2022 and re-elected him in 2024.
However, Kiley said he will run in California's 6th Congressional District in 2026 as an independent due to mid-decade redistricting: "I reached a decision that, since gerrymandering seeks to elevate partisanship above everything else in our politics and governance, seeks to make it the sum and substance of our politics, then the best way to counter gerrymandering and its insidious impacts on democracy is simply to take partisanship out of the equation."
According to CalMatters' Maya C. Miller, California's new map "dramatically reshaped [Kiley's] current district into a solid pickup for Democrats."
Kiley is not the first member of the U.S. Congress to change party affiliation during a term.
Since 2000, nine other members have changed party affiliation while serving in the U.S. House. The last to do so was former Rep. Justin Amash (Mich.), who on April 29, 2020, changed his party affiliation from independent to Libertarian. Amash previously changed his party affiliation from Republican to independent on July 4, 2019.
During this time, six Democrats, three Republicans, and two independents departed their respective parties. These departures resulted in six members becoming Republicans, one becoming a Libertarian, and four becoming independents. These figures account for Amash changing his party affiliation twice during his tenure.
In the U.S. Senate, five members have changed their party affiliations since 2000. The last to do so was former Sen. Joe Manchin (W.Va.), who on May 31, 2024, changed his party affiliation from Democrat to independent.
During this time, three Democrats and two Republicans departed their respective parties. These departures resulted in four members becoming independents and one becoming a Democrat.
Kiley's decision also makes him the fifth member of the U.S. House to serve as an independent since 2000. The last independent member was former Rep. Paul Mitchell (Mich.), who changed his party affiliation from Republican to independent on Dec. 14, 2020, and served as an independent until he left office on Jan. 3, 2021.
In the U.S. Senate, seven members have served as independents since 2000. Currently, two members of the chamber, Sens. Bernie Sanders (Vt.) and Angus King (Maine), are independents. Both currently caucus with the Democrats.
Additional reading: