NBA legend Charles Barkley has never been shy about sharing his opinions on anything – even politics. And he hasn’t always leaned the same way politically.
According to Andrew Holleran of The Spun, Charles Barkley has actually changed his political party multiple times throughout his life.
Growing up in Alabama, Barkley was originally a registered Republican but he then decided to change his political party in the 2000s and become a registered Democrat, instead. However, in 2008, he switched one final time to become an Independent voter.
This seems to perfectly describe Barkley’s political beliefs, as he has spoken out against both Republicans and Democrats throughout his career – even recently.
Earlier this year, he criticized Black people who were planning to vote for Donald Trump.
“Obviously, I’m not going to go around punching random strangers in the face – first and foremost,” Barkley said, via OutKick. “Secondly, people can vote for who they want to. People can vote for who they want to.”
“Now, I do want to say this. I want to make it perfectly clear. If you’re a black person and you wearing a Donald Trump mugshot, you are a freaking idiot,” Barkley said according to OutKick. “And I’m only saying ‘freakin’ idiot because they won’t let me say what I really wanna say. But you can figure it out, it starts with an ’f.'”
Barkley has also criticized Democrats, claiming that they have failed to deliver on promises.
“They come into our neighborhoods and say ‘we’re going to make stuff better. We’re going to do this, do this, do this,’” Barkley said according to NBC. “And then finally, us Black people are like ‘yo man, other than my ability to dunk a basketball, all my neighborhoods is still the same. Our schools are still the same.’ And that’s why Black people are being disappointed in the Democratic Party.”
Clearly, he has issues with both parties, which is why he now identifies is Independent.
