An '''independent voter''' is one who has not declared a preference for a particular [[political party]] and votes for either main political party in elections. This is usually predicated on a liking for a particular candidate rather than party.
Depending on the state, an independent voter may or may not be allowed to vote for candidates in a particular party's primary but will be allowed to vote in all other elections (the general election and non-partisan ones).
"Independent" often refers to a politician who does not belong to any political party. In the [[United States of America]], [[Ross Perot]] is one of the best-known independent candidates to run for [[president]]ial office. In those [[country|countries]] with a two-party system, independents may espouse viewpoints from both parties or may even run on a single issue not favored by either.
Sometimes, even nominal members of political parties are "independents". For instance, [[Mike Huckabee]] has been willing to take [[conservative]] religious positions that other [[Republican]]s have not. He has also taken some positions which could be seen as [[liberal]]. For this, many label him an "Independent".
In some cases, "Independent" refers to politicians who, while holding a high position, belong to a party that is neither the Republican nor Democrat party (with some being members of Communist parties).
[[Category:Political Terms]]