Third-party and independent members of the United States Congress

Third-party and independent members of the United States Congress are generally rare. Although the Republican and Democratic parties have dominated U.S. politics in a two-party system since 1856, some independents and members of other political parties have also been elected to the House of Representatives or Senate, or changed their party affiliation during their term.

Senate

Senator	State	Term	Notes
Joe Manchin	West Virginia	2010–present	Elected as a Democrat, switched to Independent in 2024^[1]
Kyrsten Sinema	Arizona	2019–present	Elected as a Democrat, switched to Independent in 2022^[2]
Angus King	Maine	2013–present	Elected as an Independent; caucuses with the Democrats
Bernie Sanders	Vermont	2007–present	Elected as an Independent; caucuses with the Democrats; Democratic Party member from 2015–2016 and 2019–2020 while running for President
Joe Lieberman	Connecticut	1989–2013	Re-elected on the Connecticut for Lieberman ticket after losing the 2006 Democratic nomination
Dean Barkley	Minnesota	2002–2003	Appointed for Independence Party of Minnesota
Jim Jeffords	Vermont	1989–2007	Switched from Republican to Independent in 2001
Bob Smith	New Hampshire	1990–2003	Switched from Republican to Independent in 1999 but switched back to Republican in 2000
James L. Buckley	New York	1971–1977	Elected as a Conservative, lost re-election as a Republican in 1976
Harry F. Byrd Jr.	Virginia	1965–1983	Switched from Democratic to Independent in 1970
Wayne Morse	Oregon	1945–1969	Switched from Republican to Independent in 1953, then to Democratic in 1955
John E. Miller	Arkansas	1937–1941	Elected as an Independent, served as Democratic
Ernest Lundeen	Minnesota	1937–1940	Elected as Farmer-Labor
George W. Norris	Nebraska	1913–1943	Switched from Republican to Independent in 1936
Elmer Austin Benson	Minnesota	1935–1936	Elected as Farmer-Labor
Robert M. La Follette Jr.	Wisconsin	1925–1947	Switched from Republican to Progressive in 1934, then back to Republican in 1946
Magnus Johnson	Minnesota	1923–1925	Elected as Farmer-Labor
Henrik Shipstead	Minnesota	1923–1947	Elected as Farmer-Labor, switched to Republican in 1940
Miles Poindexter	Washington	1911–1923	Switched from Republican to Progressive in 1912, switched back to Republican in 1915
Joseph M. Dixon	Montana	1907–1913	Switched from Republican to Progressive in 1912
Henry Heitfeld	Idaho	1897–1903	Elected as a Populist
William Alexander Harris	Kansas	1897–1903	Elected as a Populist
Henry Moore Teller	Colorado	1876–1909	Switched from Republican to Silver Republican in 1896, then to Democratic in 1903
Fred Dubois	Idaho	1891–1897	Switched from Republican to Silver Republican in 1896
Frank J. Cannon	Utah	1896–1899	Switched from Republican to Silver Republican in 1896
Richard F. Pettigrew	South Dakota	1889–1901	Switched from Republican to Silver Republican in 1896
Lee Mantle	Montana	1895–1899	Switched from Republican to Silver Republican in 1896
John P. Jones	Nevada	1873–1903	Switched from Republican to Silver in 1895, then back to Republican in 1901
William Morris Stewart	Nevada	1887–1905	Switched from Republican to Silver in 1893, then back to Republican in 1901
William V. Allen	Nebraska	1893–1901	Elected as a Populist
James H. Kyle	South Dakota	1891–1901	Elected as a Populist
Marion Butler	North Carolina	1895–1901	Elected as a Populist
William A. Peffer	Kansas	1891–1897	Elected as a Populist
Harrison H. Riddleberger	Virginia	1883–1889	Elected as a Readjuster
William Mahone	Virginia	1881–1887	Elected as a Readjuster
David Davis	Illinois	1877–1883	Elected as an Independent
Newton Booth	California	1875–1881	Elected as an Anti-Monopolist, served as an Independent Republican
Orris S. Ferry	Connecticut	1867–1875	Elected as a Liberal Republican in 1872
Morgan C. Hamilton	Texas	1870–1877	Switched from Republican to Liberal Republican in 1872, switched back to Republican in 1875
Charles Sumner	Massachusetts	1851–1874	Elected as Free Soil Democratic in 1851, became a Republican in 1855, then became a Liberal Republican in 1872
David T. Patterson	Tennessee	1866–1869	Elected as a Unionist in 1866, became a Republican by 1867
Joseph S. Fowler	Tennessee	1866–1871	Elected as an Unconditional Unionist in 1866, became a Republican by 1867
John Creswell	Maryland	1865–1867	Elected as an Unconditional Unionist in 1864
Benjamin Gratz Brown	Missouri	1863–1867	Elected as a Union Emancipationist in 1863, became a Radical Unionist (Republican) by 1865
Peter G. Van Winkle	West Virginia	1863–1869	Elected as a Unionist in 1863, became a Republican by 1867
Reverdy Johnson	Maryland	1863–1868	Elected as a Unionist in 1863, switched to Democratic by 1865
Lemuel J. Bowden	Virginia	1863–1864	Elected as a Unionist in 1863
Thomas Holliday Hicks	Maryland	1862–1865	Elected as an Unconditional Unionist in 1862
Robert Wilson	Missouri	1862–1863	Appointed as a Unionist in 1862
John B. Henderson	Missouri	1862–1869	Elected as a Unionist in 1862, became a Republican by 1865
Garrett Davis	Kentucky	1861–1872	Elected as a Union Democrat in 1861, switched to Democratic by 1867
John S. Carlile	Virginia	1861–1865	Elected as a Unionist in 1861
Waitman T. Willey	Virginia	1861–1863	Elected as a Unionist in 1861

House of Representatives

Representative	District	Term	Notes
Paul Mitchell	Michigan 10th	2017–2021	First elected as a Republican, switched to independent in 2020
Justin Amash	Michigan 3rd	2011–2021	First elected as a Republican, switched to independent in 2019 and then to Libertarian in 2020
Virgil Goode	Virginia 5th	1997–2009	Switched from Democratic to independent in 2000, then to Republican in 2002
Jo Ann Emerson	Missouri 8th	1996–2013	First elected as a Republican, re-elected as an independent due to state law, then rejoined Republicans in early 1997
Bernie Sanders	Vermont at-large	1991–2007	Elected as an independent
William Carney	New York 1st	1979–1987	Elected as a Conservative and later sat with Republicans, switched to Republican in 1985
Frazier Reams	Ohio 9th	1951–1955	Elected as an independent
Franklin Delano Roosevelt Jr.	New York 20th	1949–1955	Elected as a Liberal, re-elected as Democratic
Leo Isacson	New York 24th	1948–1949	Elected from the American Labor Party ticket
Harold Hagen	Minnesota 9th	1943–1955	Elected as a member of the Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party in 1942
John Bernard	Minnesota 8th	1937–1939	Elected as a member of the Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party in 1936
Dewey Johnson	Minnesota 5th	1937–1939	Elected as a member of the Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party in 1936
Franck R. Havenner	California 4th	1937–1941, 1945–1953	Elected as a Progressive
Henry Teigan	Minnesota 3rd	1937–1939	Elected as a member of the Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party in 1936
Thomas Ryum Amlie	Wisconsin 1st	1935–1939	Elected as a Progressive
Gerald J. Boileau	Wisconsin 7th	1935–1939	Elected as a Progressive
Rich T. Buckler	Minnesota 9th	1935–1943	Elected as a member of the Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party in 1934
Bernard J. Gehrmann	Wisconsin 10th	1935–1943	Elected as a Progressive
Harry Sauthoff	Wisconsin 2nd	1935–1945	Elected as a Progressive
George J. Schneider	Wisconsin 8th	1935–1939	Elected as a Progressive
Merlin Hull	Wisconsin 9th	1935–1944	Elected as a Progressive
Vito Marcantonio	New York 20th	1935–1937, 1939–1945	Elected from the American Labor Party ticket in 1938
Gardner R. Withrow	Wisconsin 3rd	1935–1939	Elected as a Progressive
Henry M. Arens	Minnesota at-large	1933–1935	Elected as a member of the Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party in 1932
Magnus Johnson	Minnesota at-large	1933–1935	Elected as a member of the Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party in 1932
Ernest Lundeen	Minnesota 5th, Minnesota at-large, Minnesota 3rd	1933–1937	Elected as a member of the Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party in 1932
Francis Shoemaker	Minnesota at-large	1933–1935	Elected as a member of the Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party in 1932
Paul John Kvale	Minnesota 7th, Minnesota at-large	1929–1939	Elected as a member of the Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party in 1928
Knud Wefald	Minnesota 9th	1923–1927	Elected as a member of the Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party in 1922
Ole J. Kvale	Minnesota 7th	1923–1929	Elected as a member of the Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party in 1922
William Leighton Carss	Minnesota 8th	1919–1929	Elected as a member of the Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party in 1918
Fiorello La Guardia	New York 14th, New York 20th	1917–1919, 1923–1933	Re-elected as a Socialist in 1924, ran as a Republican in all other elections
John A. Elston	California 6th	1915–1921	Elected as a Progressive in 1915
Meyer London	New York 12th	1915–1923	Elected as a Socialist
Whitmell P. Martin	Louisiana 3rd	1915–1929	Elected as a Progressive
Thomas D. Schall	Minnesota 10th	1915–1925	Elected as a Progressive
Charles Hiram Randall	California 9th	1915–1921	Elected as a Prohibitionist
Walter M. Chandler	New York 19th	1913–1919	Elected as a Progressive in 1913
James W. Bryan	Washington at-large	1913–1915	Elected as a Progressive in 1913
Jacob Falconer	Washington at-large	1913–1915	Elected as a Progressive in 1913
William H. Hinebaugh	Illinois 12th	1913–1915	Elected as a Progressive in 1913
Willis James Hulings	Pennsylvania 28th	1913–1915	Elected as a Progressive in 1913
William Josiah MacDonald	Michigan 12th	1913–1915	Elected as a Progressive in 1913
Milton William Shreve	Pennsylvania 25th	1913–1915, 1919–1933	Re-elected as an independent Republican in 1920
Henry Wilson Temple	Pennsylvania 24th	1913–1915	Elected as a Progressive in 1913
Charles M. Thomson	Illinois 10th	1913–1915	Elected as a Progressive in 1913
William Stephens	California 10th	1911–1917	Switched parties from a Republican to a Progressive in 1913
Roy O. Woodruff	Michigan 10th	1913–1915	Elected as a Progressive in 1913
Bill Kent	California 1st	1913–1917	Elected as an independent
Ira C. Copley	Illinois 11th	1911–1923	Switched from a Republican to a Progressive in 1915
Victor L. Berger	Wisconsin 5th	1911–1929	Elected as a Socialist
Peter A. Porter	New York 34th	1907–1909	Elected as an independent Republican
Caldwell Edwards	Montana at-large	1901–1903	Elected as a Populist
Thomas L. Glenn	Idaho at-large	1901–1903	Elected as a Silver
John Wilbur Atwater	North Carolina 4th	1899–1901	Elected as a Populist
William Neville	Nebraska 6th	1899–1903	Elected as a Populist
Edgar Wilson	Idaho at-large	1899–1901	Elected as a Silver Republican
Charles A. Barlow	California 6th	1897–1899	Elected as a Populist
Jeremiah D. Botkin	Kansas at-large	1897–1899	Elected as a Populist
Curtis H. Castle	California 7th	1897–1899	Elected as a Populist
John Edgar Fowler	North Carolina 3rd	1897–1899	Elected as a Populist
William Laury Greene	Nebraska 6th	1897–1899	Elected as a Populist
James Gunn	Idaho at-large	1897–1899	Elected as a Populist
William Carey Jones	Washington at-large	1897–1899	Elected as a Silver Republican
John Edward Kelley	South Dakota at-large	1897–1899	Elected as a Populist
Freeman Knowles	South Dakota at-large	1897–1899	Elected as a Populist
Charles Martin	North Carolina 6th	1897–1899	Elected as a Populist
Samuel Maxwell	Nebraska 3rd	1897–1899	Elected as a Populist
Nelson B. McCormick	Kansas 6th	1897–1899	Elected as a Populist
Mason S. Peters	Kansas 2nd	1897–1899	Elected as a Populist
Edwin R. Ridgely	Kansas 3rd	1897–1901	Elected as a Populist
William Ledyard Stark	Nebraska 4th	1897–1903	Elected as a Populist
Roderick Dhu Sutherland	Nebraska 5th	1897–1901	Elected as a Populist
William D. Vincent	Kansas 5th	1897–1899	Elected as a Populist
Albert Taylor Goodwyn	Alabama 5th	1896–1897	Elected as a Populist
John F. Shafroth	Colorado 1st	1895–1904	Switched from Republican to Silver Republican in 1897
Milford W. Howard	Alabama 7th	1895–1899	Elected as a Populist in 1894
Harry Skinner	North Carolina 1st	1895–1899	Elected as a Populist
William Franklin Strowd	North Carolina 4th	1895–1899	Elected as a Populist
John Calhoun Bell	Colorado 2nd	1893–1903	Elected as a Populist
Marion Cannon	California 6th	1893–1895	Elected as a Populist
Lafe Pence	Colorado 1st	1893–1895	Elected as a Populist
Alonzo C. Shuford	North Carolina 7th	1893–1899	Elected as a Populist
Thomas Jefferson Hudson	Kansas 3rd	1893–1895	Elected as a Populist
Haldor Boen	Minnesota 7th	1893–1895	Elected as a Populist
Bill Harris	Kansas at-large	1893–1895	Elected as a Populist
Bill Baker	Kansas 6th	1891–1897	Elected as a Populist
Benjamin H. Clover	Kansas 3rd	1891–1893	Elected as a Populist
John Davis	Kansas 5th	1891–1895	Elected as a Populist
Kittel Halvorson	Minnesota 5th	1891–1893	Elected as a Populist
Omer Madison Kem	Nebraska 3rd	1891–1897	Elected as a Populist
William A. McKeighan	Nebraska 2nd	1891–1895	Elected as a Populist
John G. Otis	Kansas 4th	1891–1893	Elected as a Populist
Jerry Simpson	Kansas 7th	1891–1895	Elected as a Populist
Thomas E. Watson	Georgia 10th	1891–1893	Elected as a Populist
Lewis P. Featherstone	Arkansas 1st	1889–1891	Elected as a member of the Labor Party
Samuel I. Hopkins	Virginia 6th	1887–1889	Elected as a member of the Labor Party
John Nichols	North Carolina 4th	1887–1889	Elected as an independent
Henry Smith	Wisconsin 4th	1887–1889	Elected as a member of the Labor Party
Benjamin F. Shively	Indiana 13th	1884–1885	Elected as an Anti-Monopolist
James Ronald Chalmers	Mississippi 6th	1883–1885	Elected as an Independent
Ted Lyman	Massachusetts 9th	1883–1885	Elected as an Independent
Thomas P. Ochiltree	Texas 7th	1883–1885	Elected as an Independent
Charles N. Brumm	Pennsylvania 13th	1881–1909	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party in 1880
Joseph Henry Burrows	Missouri 10th	1881–1883	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party in 1880
Ira S. Haseltine	Missouri 6th	1881–1883	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party in 1880
James Mosgrove	Pennsylvania 25th	1881–1883	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party in 1880
Theron Moses Rice	Missouri 7th	1881–1883	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party in 1880
J. Hyatt Smith	New York 3rd	1881–1883	Elected as an independent
Bradley Barlow	Vermont 3rd	1879–1881	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party in 1878
Nicholas Ford	Missouri 9th	1879–1883	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party in 1878
Albert P. Forsythe	Illinois 15th	1879–1881	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party in 1878
Edward H. Gillette	Iowa 7th	1879–1881	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party in 1878
George Jones	Texas 5th	1879–1883	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party
George W. Ladd	Maine 4th	1879–1883	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party
William M. Lowe	Alabama 8th	1879–1882	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party in 1878
Gilbert De La Matyr	Indiana 7th	1879–1881	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party in 1878
Thompson H. Murch	Maine 5th	1879–1883	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party
Henry Persons	Georgia 4th	1879–1881	Elected as an independent
Daniel Lindsay Russell	North Carolina 3rd	1879–1881	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party
Emory Speer	Georgia 9th	1879–1883	Elected as an independent
James Weaver	Iowa 6th	1879–1889	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party in 1878
Hendrick Bradley Wright	Pennsylvania 12th	1879–1881	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party in 1878
Seth Hartman Yocum	Pennsylvania 20th	1879–1881	Elected as a member of the United States Greenback Party in 1878

References

^ Broadwater, Luke (May 31, 2024). "Manchin Becomes an Independent, Leaving Options Open for Another Run". The New York Times. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
^ Hulse, Carl; Victor, Daniel (December 9, 2022). "Kyrsten Sinema Says She Will Leave the Democratic Party". The New York Times. Retrieved December 9, 2022.

[1] Broadwater, Luke (May 31, 2024). "Manchin Becomes an Independent, Leaving Options Open for Another Run". The New York Times. Retrieved May 31, 2024.

[2] Hulse, Carl; Victor, Daniel (December 9, 2022). "Kyrsten Sinema Says She Will Leave the Democratic Party". The New York Times. Retrieved December 9, 2022.

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[2]

v t e Third-party and independent members of the United States House of Representatives
Law and Order Party	Henry Y. Cranston Elisha R. Potter
Constitutional Union Party	William Appleton James S. Rollins
Liberal Republican Party	Nathaniel P. Banks Henry B. Banning James G. Blair Alexander Boarman Frederick George Bromberg John Edwards Gustavus A. Finkelnburg William Joseph Hynes George A. Sheridan
Greenback Party	Bradley Barlow Charles N. Brumm Joseph Henry Burrows Nicholas Ford Albert P. Forsythe Edward H. Gillette Ira Sherwin Hazeltine George W. Jones George W. Ladd William M. Lowe Gilbert De La Matyr James Mosgrove Thompson H. Murch Theron Moses Rice Daniel Lindsay Russell James B. Weaver Luman Hamlin Weller Hendrick Bradley Wright Seth Hartman Yocum
Readjuster Party	Henry Bowen Benjamin Stephen Hooper Harry Libbey Robert Murphy Mayo John Paul John Sergeant Wise
Labor Party	Lewis P. Featherstone Samuel I. Hopkins Henry Smith
Populist Party	John Wilbur Atwater William Baker Charles A. Barlow John Calhoun Bell Haldor Boen Jeremiah D. Botkin Marion Cannon Curtis H. Castle Benjamin H. Clover John Davis Caldwell Edwards John Edgar Fowler Albert Taylor Goodwyn William Laury Greene James Gunn Kittel Halvorson William Alexander Harris Milford W. Howard Thomas Jefferson Hudson John Edward Kelley Omer Madison Kem Freeman Knowles Charles H. Martin William A. McKeighan Samuel Maxwell Nelson B. McCormick William Neville John G. Otis Lafe Pence Mason S. Peters Edwin R. Ridgely Jerry Simpson Alonzo C. Shuford Harry Skinner William Ledyard Stark William Franklin Strowd Roderick Dhu Sutherland William D. Vincent Thomas E. Watson
Silver Republican Party	Thomas L. Glenn William Carey Jones John F. Shafroth Edgar Wilson
Socialist Party	Victor L. Berger Fiorello La Guardia Meyer London
Progressive Parties	Thomas Ryum Amlie Gerald J. Boileau Walter M. Chandler Ira C. Copley Jacob Falconer Bernard J. Gehrmann Franck R. Havenner William H. Hinebaugh Willis James Hulings Merlin Hull Melville Clyde Kelly William Josiah MacDonald Whitmell P. Martin Harry Sauthoff Thomas D. Schall George J. Schneider William Stephens Henry Wilson Temple Charles M. Thomson Gardner R. Withrow Roy O. Woodruff
Farmer–Labor Party	Henry M. Arens John Bernard Rich T. Buckler William Leighton Carss Harold Hagen Dewey Johnson Magnus Johnson Ole J. Kvale Paul John Kvale Ernest Lundeen Francis Shoemaker Henry Teigan Knud Wefald
American Labor Party	Leo Isacson Vito Marcantonio
Liberal Party	Irwin D. Davidson Franklin D. Roosevelt Jr.
Other parties	▌Justin Amash (Libertarian) ▌William Carney (Conservative) ▌Charles Randall (Prohibition) ▌Benjamin F. Shively (Anti-Monopoly)
Independents	William B. Anderson Alexander Campbell James Ronald Chalmers Jo Ann Emerson Thomas M. Foglietta Virgil Goode William Kent Caleb Lyon Paul Mitchell John Nichols Thomas P. Ochiltree Peter A. Porter Frazier Reams Bernie Sanders Julius Hawley Seelye Milton William Shreve J. Hyatt Smith Amos Tuck George Washington Wright
Portal:Politics Third party (U.S. politics) Notable third-party performances in United States elections

v t e Third-party United States senators
Nullifier	John C. Calhoun (SC) Robert Y. Hayne (SC) Stephen D. Miller (SC) William C. Preston (SC)
Know Nothing	John Bell (TN) John J. Crittenden (KY) Anthony Kennedy (MD) John B. Thompson (KY)
Free Soil	Lawrence Brainerd (VT) Salmon P. Chase (OH) Francis Gillette (CT) John P. Hale (NH) James Harlan (IA) Charles Sumner (MA) Henry Wilson (MA)
Union	Lemuel J. Bowden (VA) B. Gratz Brown (MO) John S. Carlile (VA) John Creswell (MD) Garrett Davis (KY) Joseph S. Fowler (TN) John B. Henderson (MO) Thomas H. Hicks (MD) Reverdy Johnson (MD) David T. Patterson (TN) Peter G. Van Winkle (WV) Waitman T. Willey (WV) Robert Wilson (MO)
Liberal Republican	Reuben Fenton (NY) Orris S. Ferry (CT) Morgan C. Hamilton (TX) Carl Schurz (MO) Charles Sumner (MA) Lyman Trumbull (IL)
Readjuster	William Mahone (VA) Harrison H. Riddleberger (VA)
Populist	William V. Allen (NE) Marion Butler (NC) William A. Harris (KS) Henry Heitfeld (ID) James H. Kyle (SD) William A. Peffer (KS)
Silver or Silver Republican	Frank J. Cannon (UT) Fred Dubois (ID) John P. Jones (NV) Lee Mantle (MT) Richard F. Pettigrew (SD) William M. Stewart (NV) Henry M. Teller (CO)
Nonpartisan League	Lynn Frazier (ND) William Langer (ND)
Farmer–Labor	Elmer A. Benson (MN) Magnus Johnson (MN) Ernest Lundeen (MN) Henrik Shipstead (MN)
Other	▌Dean Barkley (Independence–MN) ▌Newton Booth (Anti-Monopoly–CA) ▌James L. Buckley (Conservative–NY) ▌Joseph Cilley (Liberty–NH) ▌John B. Francis (Law and Order–RI) ▌Robert M. La Follette Jr. (Progressive–WI) ▌Miles Poindexter (Progressive–WA)
Independents	Harry F. Byrd Jr. (VA) David Davis (IL) John P. Hale (NH) Jim Jeffords (VT) Angus King (ME) Joe Lieberman (CT) Joe Manchin (WV) Wayne Morse (OR) George W. Norris (NE) Bernie Sanders (VT) Kyrsten Sinema (AZ) Bob Smith (NH)
Politics portal Third party (U.S. politics) Notable third-party performances in United States elections