the Political Underdog Squad
abbreviation: P.U.S.; The only members of the U.S. Congress to belong to nonmainstream political parties or registered as independent for a long period of time between 1971- 2021. They are Representative James Stanton, Senator Bernard Sanders, Senator Angus King Jr., Senator James Jeffords, Delegate Victor Frazer, Resident Commissioner Baltasar Corrada, Senator Harry Byrd Jr., Senator Dean M. Barkley, and Representative Justin Amash. All of them were independent, but Justin Amash changed to a Libertarian during his last year in office due to the barrage of partisan bickering from the Republicans and Democrats, which he was the first Libertarian to have held a seat in congress.
Why does the Political Underdog Squad matter so much? Because these politicians are the only politicians in Congress, over a fifty year period, be members nonmainstream political parties, which helps to keep the two mainstream parties in check.