Report: California Republican Party relegated to third-party status

Independent voters now surpassed registered Republicans in California, making the GOP fall to third-party status as Democrats seek to flip seats to take control of the House this November, according to new data reported by Politico.

Reality check: Registration doesn’t guarantee significant voter turnout. But the surge of independents could help Democrats since the group is more likely to vote Democratic than Republican. However, Politico notes that "Republicans still stand to play an outsized role in next week’s primary despite the registration erosion. GOP voters typically vote at higher rates in nonpresidential year primary elections than Democrats."