Registered independents outnumber Republicans in California by around 73,000, The Sacramento Bee reports.

The big picture: A Republican hasn't been elected to statewide office in California for more than a decade, so their sagging registration numbers could present a missed opportunity as California Democrats find themselves in the midst of an identity crisis ahead of this fall's midterm elections. But the Bee notes an interesting fact: "Republicans maintain an outsized influence because they vote more consistently than Democrats or independents."