California Representative Kevin Kiley has made headlines by officially breaking away from the Republican Party, marking a notable shift as he becomes the first Independent in the House of Representatives since 2019. His decision stems from growing frustrations with GOP leadership and the challenges posed by redistricting.
Despite his departure, Kiley (I-Calif.) will maintain a working relationship with Republicans for “administrative purposes.” However, his switch in party affiliation adds complexity to the GOP’s already tenuous control over the House.
“Gerrymandering elevates partisanship above all else in our politics,” Kiley explained to reporters, as reported by Axios. “To combat the detrimental effects of gerrymandering on democracy, we must remove partisanship from the equation.”
As Kiley steps into his new role as an Independent, he indicated that his support for House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) should not be taken for granted, even though he plans to continue caucusing with Republicans to secure committee assignments.
“I don’t know if he would tell you I have been so far,” Kiley remarked, hinting at his previously independent voting tendencies.
The current composition of the House now stands at 217 Republicans, 214 Democrats, and one Independent. Kiley’s transition makes him the first Independent voice in the House since former Michigan Representative Justin Amash.
Kiley’s switch comes against the backdrop of redistricting in California that has enabled the Democratic-led state to reconfigure its congressional maps to counter redistricting in Texas.
The mid-decade redistricting effort has forced Kiley, who currently represents California’s 3rd Congressional District, into the 6th District, which he filed for just last week.
The newly redrawn 6th District is expected to be competitive with Democrats such as Richard Pan and Thien Ho vying for it. Kiley has decried “gerrymandering” as “a plague on democracy.”
Prior to his decision to ditch the GOP, Kiley had bucked party leadership on key votes.
Last fall, he was fiercely critical of GOP leadership’s decision to keep the House out of session during the record-breaking 43-day-long government shutdown.
Kiley had publicly pushed for Republicans to explore an Obamacare deal with Democrats to end the shutdown.
Last month, he joined Reps. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) and Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) in helping to defeat a measure aimed at preventing lawmakers from furnishing resolutions to undermine President Trump’s tariffs.
Kiley did not give Johnson a heads-up before his Friday announcement that he planned to leave the Republican Party, but he did have a call with the speaker over the weekend.
Johnson has faced headaches over his majority, which is already historically slim, following the retirement of former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) and the death of late Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.).
In January, Rep. Jim Baird (R-Ind.) suffered injuries from a car accident that ultimately killed his wife. Republicans also had heartburn over Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas), who has been mired in a cheating scandal and recently passed on reelection.
