Cliven Bundy formally leaves the Republican Party

LAS VEGAS, May 27 (UPI) -- Anti-government rancher Cliven Bundy has left the Republican Party, registering with the Independent American Party instead.

Speaking at an event held in his honor, Bundy and his wife Carol changed their party affiliation, citing what he viewed as betrayal by Republican Governor of Nevada Brian Sandoval for allowing the Bureau of Land Management to confiscate Bundy's cattle after repeated refusals by Bundy to pay grazing fees.

"The Governor's intervention could have prevented the near disaster at Bunkerville" wrote representatives of Bundy's new party in a press release. "Unfortunately, the Governor represented the interests of the Federal Government BLM bureaucrats instead of protecting Bundy's rights and the rights of all Nevadans."

The IAP is a formally-organized political party and does not represent Americans who have no party affiliation or choose the word "independent" to describe which voting-bloc they identify as. IAP registration has more than doubled in size since 2005; meanwhile the number of voters registering as Republican consistently declined in that same time period.