Sen. Joe Manchin Leaves Democratic Party, Registers as Independent

West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin has left the Democratic Party to register as an independent, citing partisan extremism and a broken political system. Despite this change, he will continue to caucus with the Democrats and retain his position as chair of the Senate's Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Manchin, who is retiring from the Senate at the end of the year, has expressed support for the Democratic nominee for West Virginia governor and has ruled out a presidential bid.