there are over 420 registered political parties in the united states of america, with many different blends of political viewpoints. however, there are only two nationally recognized political parties, the republicans and democrats. most of the other parties fall under those two political parties with variations, or under other ideological umbrellas, like progressive, libertarian, conservative, socialist, communist, etc. they are either underfunded or undersupported and highly suppressed. nearly 44% of politically active citizens prefer to identify as independent because of this suppression. it is less common to achieve political influence in modern government functions, but some lawmakers such as joe lieberman may retire their parties with their careers.