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Bernie Sanders Suspends Campaign For Democratic Presidential Nomination
By
Sophia Chang
Published Apr 8, 2020
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By
Sophia Chang
Published Apr 8, 2020
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Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders has suspended his campaign for the Democratic nomination for president, leaving former Vice President Joseph Biden as the presumptive nominee.
In a video posted to his campaign website Wednesday, Sanders said his inability to win enough delegates made the decision clear:
"I have concluded that this battle for the Democratic nomination will not be successful, and so today I am announcing the suspension of my campaign," Sanders said in the video. "The path to victory is virtually impossible."
Sanders called Biden "a very decent man who I will work with to move our progressive ideals forward" -- though he stopped short of formally endorsing him.
Sanders also said he'll remain on the ballots of all the remaining primaries, and called on his supporters to help him assemble as many delegates as possible to "exert significant influence" on the party platform at the Democratic National Convention in August.
"As you all know, we have never been just a campaign. We are a grassroots multiracial multigenerational movement, which has always believed that real change never comes from the top on down, but always from the bottom on up. We have taken on Wall Street, insurance companies, the drug companies, the fossil fuel industry, the military industrial complex, the prison industrial complex, and the greed of the entire corporate elite. That struggle continues," Sanders said. "While this campaign is coming to an end, our movement is not."
As an independent democratic socialist, Sanders could take credit for nudging the Democratic party to the left, particularly with signature policy proposals such as Medicare For All. Politico noted that Biden has started adopting some of Sanders' platform: "For the last year, Sanders has driven the Democratic primary in many ways, putting signature policy proposals like Medicare for All at the center of the nominating contest and pulling other candidates to the left on a number of issues. Before Sanders’ withdrawal, Biden incorporated one of the Vermont senator’s priorities into his own campaign platform, proposing to make public colleges and universities tuition-free for students whose family incomes fall below $125,000. In recent weeks, Biden’s campaign has also been talking privately with some of Sanders’ allies, such as the climate change-focused group Sunrise Movement."
He also backed the movement calling on Governor Andrew Cuomo to cancel rent for struggling tenants in New York.
In his second run for the presidency, Sanders started off strong in the first primaries in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada. But he failed to win key primaries in Florida and Arizona, and Biden had a commanding lead in delegates after Super Tuesday. The coronavirus pandemic loomed large over the election season, dominating news coverage and forcing candidates to cancel rallies and events.
And while he didn't officially endorse Biden in his video, Sanders has previously vowed to support him for president in a show of unity — and he called on his supporters to join him.
"We will go forward to defeat Donald Trump, the most dangerous president in modern American history," Sanders said in the video. "And we will fight to elect strong progressives at every level of government from Congress to the school board."
Biden posted a statement after Sanders's announcement. "Bernie has put his heart and soul into not only running for President, but for the causes and issues he has been dedicated to his whole life," he wrote in a post on Medium. "Senator Sanders and his supporters have changed the dialogue in America. Issues which had been given little attention — or little hope of ever passing — are now at the center of the political debate. Income inequality, universal health care, climate change, free college, relieving students from the crushing debt of student loans. These are just a few of the issues Bernie and his supporters have given life to. And while Bernie and I may not agree on how we might get there, we agree on the ultimate goal for these issues and many more."
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bernie sanders
2020 presidential election
Sophia Chang
Sophia Chang is a former WNYC and Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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