Rep. Kevin Kiley leaves GOP to become an independent, complicating Johnson's majority

[highplainsdem]

Source: CBS

Rep. Kevin Kiley of California said Monday he was immediately leaving the Republican Party to become an independent.

"I'm also today asking the clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives to have that reflected in the official roster," Kiley said in a call with reporters.

The move complicates House Speaker Mike Johnson's narrow majority, though Kiley said he plans to caucus with the Republican Party "for the remainder of this term."

-snip-

But Kiley would not say whether he would be a reliable vote for Johnson during procedural votes. Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, can afford to lose one vote, if all members are present and voting.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/kevin-kiley-leaves-republican-party-becomes-independent/

---

He said this is about hyperpartisanship.

[JustAnotherGen]

1. What a little snake

THIS is how he responds to California's re-districting? Little brat.

[efhmc]

2. What the hay does that mean? That you vote with your party, no matter how evil and stupid they are?

[tazcat]

3. This guy thinks he slime his way into another term. In California. Sure.

[walkingman]

7. Yes, he think if he doesn't call himself a Rethug that means more people will vote for him.

In Texas, maybe....but California is not Texas - they have a little more sense. ☮

[ananda]

13. LOL. In Texas, that might be a way to lose votes.

Texas magats are truly lost to the cult.

[SheltieLover]

4. Excellent!

?si=nXkB3LoovkgqrYAi

[NJCher]

5. throws head back, laughs

[SheltieLover]

6. Lol

Moses must be 💩ing himself.

[obamanut2012]

24. He is 100% still a craven wingnut

He has been "undistricted" in the Sacramento area, and this is his Hail Mary pass. It won't work. I live here, and he is a joke outside of the Rocklin area.

Dude even refuses to hold public meetings.

[mchill]

8. I live a District north of his old district

And never really heard of him until Prop 50 passed. Then all of a sudden he was appearing on MSNOW and became this snarky little guy on the House Judiciary Committee. He's desperate for a job.

[FakeNoose]

9. If he leaves the Party, then the Party can't primary him ... is that the plan?

Or maybe it's that his District has changed so radically that he believes can't win as a Repuke.
But this is sort of insulting. How dumb does he think the California voters are?

[dsc]

10. Nope he is trying to avoid the scarlet R

California has a jungle primary.

[live love laugh]

11. Smells like bullshit.

[progressoid]

12. Well...

[cstanleytech]

14. Same snake just with a new skin.

[SunSeeker]

15. Kiley is not fooling anyone. He's still a MAGAt.

And NARAL gave him a 0% score on reproductive rights. https://reproductivefreedomforall.org/lawmaker/kevin-kiley/#:~:text=How%20did%20Kevin%20Kiley%20vote%20on%20abortion,voting%20record%20by%20Reproductive%20Freedom%20for%20All%C2%AE.

Fuck that guy.

[NBachers]

16. It's called "Save Ass."

[ShazamIam]

17. I live in this fools district, it was formerly pure red and is now purple turning blue. He is only trying to get

re-elected. He knows he might lose in November.

[Akakoji]

18. Nasty little parasite

He got gerrymandered out so last week he claimed he was running as an Independent to not lose his seat. Either way, he’s losing his seat. His officially registering is pathetic, frenetic theater. He’s still a Republican. He still has the same voting record. He and every Republican must be held responsible for what they have done, or meekly allowed to have done. Epstein, Affordability, Regime Change and Foreign Wars, where is my beautiful house must be repeated over and over again.

[red dog 1]

19. It's likely that this will make Moscow Mike Johnson more nervous than he already is....so that's good.

[kurtyboy]

20. Just like the wimpy assholes in ICE

A degenerate little weasel who doesn't want his real views to be broadcast. Hiding behind an "INDEPENDENT" mask.

He will fail to win back his seat in the California jungle primary.

Paraphrasing Harry Truman: If it's a choice between a genuine Republican, and a Republican in Democratic independent clothing, the people will choose the genuine article, every time;

[Javaman]

21. he's still caucusing with the repukes.

don't ever believe that he's suddenly "seen the light", he's just positioning himself to be reelected, once done he'll go back to being a repuke.

[From The Ashes]

22. A republican by any other name...

...is still as stupid and complicit as the rest of them.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

23. MaddowBlog-GOP member becomes an independent, narrowing House Republicans' edge again

With Rep. Kevin Kiley going independent, the House GOP majority is down to 217 votes — in a chamber where 218 is a majority.

When 2026 got underway, there were 220 House Republicans.

Then MTG resigned.

Then Doug LaMalfa died unexpectedly.

Now Kevin Kiley has left the GOP to become an independent, creating a 217-214-1 chamber.
www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2026-03-09T20:07:33.811Z

https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/gop-member-becomes-an-independent-narrowing-the-house-republicans-edge-again

In the House, independent members are quite rare. In fact, in recent years, there are only two examples: former Rep. Paul Mitchell of Michigan, who left the Republican Party to become an independent in 2020, and former Rep. Justin Amash, another former Michigan Republican who became a Libertarian the same year.

This rarefied company now numbers three. The Hill reported:

Rep. Kevin Kiley (Calif.) announced Monday that he will formally leave the Republican Party this week to become an independent. […]

‘I will be the sole independent member of the House of Representatives,’ Kiley told reporters Monday during a virtual press conference.

Kiley had already indicated that he intended to run for re-election as an independent, instead of a GOP incumbent, though there have still been questions as to his party affiliation between now and Election Day.....

At that point, the GOP had 218 House members to the Democrats’ 214, which, as a matter of legislative arithmetic, meant Republican leaders could only afford to lose one vote in any major floor fight. But with Kiley becoming an independent, the House Republican majority is now down to 217 votes — in a chamber where 218 is a majority.

To be sure, House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana probably isn’t panicking, or at least not any more than usual, for the simple fact that Kiley has vowed to continue to caucus with the GOP (a necessary move to maintain his current committee assignments).

That said, Kiley will likely be looking for new ways to prove his independent bona fides in the coming weeks and months, which suggests Republican leaders shouldn’t count on his support. What’s more, as more members retire or lose primary fights, attendance is likely to make matters even more difficult for GOP leaders hoping to pass anything meaningful between now and the midterm elections.

By any fair measure, 2025 was exceedingly difficult for Johnson and his party. Every day seems to bring fresh reasons to believe 2026 will be worse.

[Quanto Magnus]

25. He's just doing this to deceive voters

He is and will continue to vote with Republicans. He will continue to vote for the fascist agenda. He just knows having an (R) next to his name in CA means he won't get re-elected.