An independent voter has declined to register with any political party. A Libertarian, when capitalized, is a member of the Libertarian Party, a specific political party founded in 1971 with its own platform built around personal liberty, economic liberty and limited government. You can hold libertarian-leaning views, often written with a lowercase "l," without ever joining the Libertarian Party, and plenty of independents do exactly that.
Registering as independent or unaffiliated means you haven't joined a party, not that you hold a specific set of views. Independents span the political spectrum, from voters with consistent views across issues to those who pick and choose candidate by candidate.
There's no independent platform or national independent organization the way there is for a party. No one speaks for independents as a bloc, because independents don't share a single ideology by definition.
The Libertarian Party was founded in 1971 by David Nolan, making it one of the oldest active third parties in the country.
Its platform centers on personal and economic liberty: the party describes its core position as opposing government interference in people's personal, family and business decisions, organizing its platform around personal liberty, economic liberty and what it calls "securing liberty."
It's often called the third-largest party in the United States, behind the Democratic and Republican parties, measured by candidates fielded and historical voter registration. That ranking has real limits worth knowing: in a 2013 fact-check of this exact claim, PolitiFact found that broad "independent" or "unaffiliated" registration categories in the states that track party registration far outnumbered registered Libertarians, and that some single-state parties had more registrants than the national Libertarian Party. "Third-largest party" is a real and defensible claim, but it describes a distant third, not a close one.
Sources: Ballotpedia, "Libertarian Party" (founding, platform); PolitiFact, "Libertarians say they're third-largest political party" (September 9, 2013).
You can hold libertarian views without joining the Libertarian Party. Plenty of voters who favor limited government, lower taxes or less regulation register independent, or even with a major party, rather than joining the Libertarian Party itself.
Joining the party means more than just agreeing with it. Where states let voters register by party, registering Libertarian is a formal choice with practical effects, described below. Calling yourself "libertarian-leaning" while registered independent is a different, informal choice with none of those effects.
Primaries work differently for each. In states with closed or partially closed primaries, only voters registered with a party can vote in that party's primary, including the Libertarian Party's own primary where one exists. Independents in those states generally can't vote in any party's primary, Libertarian included, unless the state allows unaffiliated voters in. See can I vote in a primary election as an independent voter? for how your state handles this.
Ballot access works differently too. Major-party candidates qualify for the general-election ballot through rules built around established parties. Libertarian candidates, like other third-party and independent candidates, often have to meet separate, sometimes more demanding signature or filing requirements that vary by state, and the party isn't on the ballot in every state in every cycle.
Running as an independent is different from running as a Libertarian. An independent candidate runs without a party label at all. A Libertarian candidate runs under the party's name and, often, its endorsement and platform.
Is "libertarian" a type of independent?
Not formally. Independent describes voters who haven't registered with any party. A Libertarian is a member of a specific party. A voter can hold libertarian views and still register independent, but that's a personal label, not the party registration.
Can independents vote in a Libertarian primary?
It depends on the state's primary rules, the same as for any other party's primary. In closed-primary states, no; in states that are open or open to unaffiliated voters, often yes. Check your state's specific rule.
Is the Libertarian Party bigger than independents as a group?
No. The pool of voters registered as independent or unaffiliated is far larger than registered Libertarians in states that track both. The Libertarian Party's "third-largest" ranking refers to its size relative to other organized parties, not to independents as a whole.
Do all states let you register as a Libertarian?
No. Not every state has party registration at all, and among those that do, ballot access and recognition for the Libertarian Party vary. Check your state's voter registration form for which parties you can register with.
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