Joe Manchin Launches Independent Leadership Council To Back Independent Candidates Nationwide

At 78, former West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin has re-entered the political arena with a new initiative aimed at recruiting and supporting independent candidates across the country.

About a year and a half after leaving the Senate frustrated with partisan extremes, Manchin and his daughter Heather have launched the Independent Leadership Council. The group held an initial summit in West Virginia to meet prospective candidates and outline how the council might provide campaign support, fundraising assistance and local organizing.

Attendees at the kickoff included Rep. Kevin Kiley of California (a former Republican now running for reelection as an independent), Seth Bodnar (an independent Senate candidate in Montana), and Michael Bridgford (an independent House candidate in Iowa). The Manchins are also watching contests in Alaska, Washington and Nebraska as potential opportunities to back independents.

Why Now?

Supporters point to growing voter disillusionment with both major parties. A Gallup poll released earlier this year found that roughly 45% of American adults identify as political independents — a record high. Manchin and his allies say that even a small number of successful independent lawmakers could wield significant influence in a closely divided Congress.

“We're not trying to start another party,” Manchin told CNN. “We're trying to get a person who can be committed to — and totally committed to — being an independent with an independent voice.”

What The Council Could Do

Heather Manchin, a former pharmaceutical executive who helps lead the effort, described the summit as an initial conversation. If the council endorses a candidate, the Manchins say they could campaign with them, raise funds, and help with on-the-ground organizing — actions they argue could tip competitive races and influence broader national politics.

Sen. Joe Manchin walks out from the Senate chamber in July 2024. - Kent Nishimura/Getty Images/File

“Our hope is that this is kind of our pilot, experiment, trying to prove it can be done,” Heather Manchin said.

Opportunities And Obstacles

Independents have picked up momentum in some states, attracting funding and attention from major-party opponents. Examples in play this cycle include Kevin Kiley in California, Seth Bodnar in Montana, Bill Hill in Alaska, and Dan Osborn in Nebraska. But independent campaigns still face significant structural hurdles such as ballot-access rules, fundraising without a party network, and race-specific dynamics — including situations where one major-party candidate refuses to withdraw, complicating an independent's path.

Manchin, who spent decades as a Democrat before finishing his final months in the Senate as an independent and retiring in January 2025, framed the new council as a way to promote deal-making and pragmatic governance in an era of polarized primaries and closed systems.

He has continued a public presence since leaving office — publishing a book, promoting his daughter’s centrist nonprofit Americans Together, and appearing at events such as a panel on the national debt at the American Enterprise Institute. Critics and allies alike note Manchin’s uncommon political flexibility; as former Sen. Rob Portman put it, “Manchin is sometimes a Democrat, sometimes an independent, sometimes a Republican.”

Manchin says he does not plan to run for office again, preferring to support others who share his approach to governance. Whether the Independent Leadership Council can translate this moment of voter dissatisfaction into durable electoral infrastructure for independents remains uncertain — but the Manchins are betting a targeted pilot could prove the model.