and what about the 170m other americans besides the partisans you're counting? unless you're a politician, it makes little (rational) sense to join a party (ye

and what about the 170m other americans besides the partisans you're counting? unless you're a politician, it makes little (rational) sense to join a party (yes, it affords voting in primaries in some places, but that's little consolation, since the primary candidates are whittled down by party insiders in the first place). voters should largely be independents, but identity and signaling are such strong attractors to humans.