Are you one of them?

Everybody knows somebody who is a self-described Democrat or Republican, but how many folks go around boosting that they are an independent, usually described as a voter who plunks for the person and not automatically for an R or a D just because they are thus?

So, are you one of them?

More and more residents are answering yes.

Here’s why.

“More and more Americans are disenchanted with the hyper-partisan politics, the one-ups-manship, the level of getting anything done, and they are tuning out,” suggests Jeremy Gruber from a newly formed national nonpartisan reform group known as Let Us Vote.

Gruber argues independent voters are ignored by the two political parties and are “second-class citizens” when it comes to participating in how elections are run. They are basically frozen out from being an Election Day poll watcher or an election official. More on that in a moment.

But who are those out-of-the-mainstream folks?

“Independents are all over the place,” Gruber begins. “They are conservatives. They are progressives. They are young and they are old.”

In addition, breaking it down even more into voting categories, they are also Latinos. Half are nonpartisan. Half of young voters feel the same way. And those who fought for this country, the veterans? Half are increasingly MIA when it comes to voting the party label.

Now, you begin to see the underlying influence independents have on the outcome of elections. The numbers tell the story.

On any given day in Michigan, there are about 38% Republicans and 38% Democrats running around, give or take a few percentage points here and there.

Even if all of them voted for their fellow party candidates, there are not enough of those voters to elect anyone, because it is mathematically impossible in a general election for either party to get to the magic 50% plateau with just their own troops.

That’s where the other 20% or so of the electorate come into play. Those independents have the power to determine the winner, which is why anyone running for office is doomed if they ignore that chunk of rebels.

“You can’t win anything in Michigan without those voters,” reflects Richard Czuba, the veteran Michigan pollster.

Gruber thinks that, by changing the rules so independents can become true stakeholders in the process, more will vote than just chuck it on Election Day.

“Michigan is no exception, where independents can’t participate in how we run our elections,” Gruber said. “We are shutting out the largest group of voters in the country.”

The state, however, is ahead of many other states by allowing independents to vote in primary elections, but they still must choose one party over the other to do it.

So, as this forced march to November beings in earnest, rest assured that the pols out there know who you are, and, if you have an “I” after your name, they are coming to get you, your money, and, most importantly, your vote.

Are you one of them?