Colorado, and Coloradans, value independence. Now that we’ve flipped the page on a new election year calendar, we will soon discover just how much we value our Independents as well.

Unaffiliated or, as they prefer to be known, “independent” voters already outnumber Democrats and Republicans combined in Colorado. Soon they will cross the 50% threshold among active voters (considered the most accurate reflection of the state’s electorate) to claim an outright majority. Are you listening, party leaders?

Rhetorically, the answer is an emphatic no. While many partisan politicians have maintained their business-as-usual mindset from Denver to D.C., Independent voter registration has steadily increased year over year as exasperated constituents continue to express their discontent with political polarization by abandoning both major parties. It turns out the voters are not nearly as divided as Congress or our Legislatures.

This movement should not be misconstrued as a sign of voter apathy. In fact, it’s just the opposite. Polling conducted by Let Colorado Vote in late November saw nearly 9-out-of-10 (86%) Independent voters say they intentionally chose that status because they reject each of the two major parties. Their independence signifies their awareness.

The main reasons voters cited for registering as Independents included dislike or distrust of both major parties (38%); desire for flexibility and independence (32%); dislike of the two-party system (30%); a desire to vote for individuals/issues, not parties (27%); and disgust with political corruption and polarization (21%). Clearly, these voters are calling out for change.

As co-chair for the campaign that opened Colorado’s partisan primaries to Independent voters (Prop 108) in 2016, I take pride in the positive impacts we’ve seen through increased voter participation since that time. Despite opposition from both major parties, Colorado held its first semi-open primary in 2018, leading to a 15% increase in participation. If we hope to sustain that type of growth in voter participation, we must acknowledge this moment and react accordingly.

Independent voters — a soon-to-be majority — are having an increasingly important impact on the current primary election system as they come to recognize that the voters control the system, not the political parties. Yet they remain dismayed by their lack of choice at the ballot box, as 71% of Independents say they are frustrated with how often only a single candidate runs in primary elections.

Contrary to partisan assertion, the primaries are owned by the people — funded by taxpayers like any other public election — and the taxpayers get to set the rules. If the parties want to have their “own” primaries, they should pay for them.

To be sure, the current process could be significantly improved — something we attempted to do by establishing a nonpartisan, single-ballot open primary in 2024. The reality is our primary elections remain semi-closed, since Independent voters can only vote on one of the two major-party ballots.

That means half the state’s voters are forced to pick a primary to participate in — Democrat or Republican — effectively cutting their options in half before general election candidates are even determined. Independents deserve a truly open primary, where all candidates are on the same ballot and every Colorado voter gets to vote for whomever they want, rather than being forced to choose between Democrat or Republican elections. With parties essentially hand-picking their candidates, it’s no wonder Colorado’s Independent voters hold the political establishment in such low regard.

The growth of Independents is the most important political trend in the state, and the parties need to recalibrate. The candidates who choose to listen to the Independents are the ones who will lead Colorado’s future.

By definition, we cannot reasonably expect Independent voters to act as a group on Election Day — nor should they. Still, political parties and their candidates would be wise to read the signals the voter bloc is sending. Independents give us a fluid and diverse pool of voters that demand information and understanding before making their choices. They are tired of extreme politics and overwhelmingly desire to see more moderate Democrat and Republican parties.

They aren’t picking sides, either. Roughly two-thirds say they would like the Democratic Party to become more moderate, while an equivalent two-thirds say they want to see the Republican Party become more moderate. Meanwhile, three-out-of-four Independents (74%) say Congress is dysfunctional and fails to represent them.

The question we should be asking is, when are the parties going to start looking more like more of the people they claim to represent? Because the one that figures it out first will be the one that wins majority support in Colorado.

Independent voters are activated citizens with the same political intensity as any highly partisan voter from the far left or far right. But right now they lack a vehicle for expressing their meaningful votes because of how the system works. As things stand, they are trapped in the party system, where they either have to be part of this ideologically extreme group, or not vote — two untenable choices. Given a better choice — one that truly values the diversity of Independents — more people will take it.

We neither want nor expect all candidates for elected office to live in the middle of the policy spectrum. Progressives and conservatives are wonderful slivers of the public, when they also consider governance and stability as key filters for their actions. But whether progressive or conservative, we do need them to meet in the middle when common sense demands action beyond aggressive social messaging and political theatre.

It’s worth noting the independents we polled listed political leadership and polarization among the three most important issues facing Colorado last November — an issue they may very well play an outsized role in addressing next November.

The reasons why independent voters now make up the majority in Colorado are very real and compelling. And the candidates who ignore them are sure to be the ones overlooked on Election Day.

Kent Thiry is the founder of Let Colorado Vote, a leading proponent of Colorado’s Independent Redistricting Commissions, and campaign co-chairman of the 2016 ballot initiatives (Props 107 and 108) that opened primary elections to independent voters and replaced caucuses with a presidential primary.