Sen. Bernie Sanders says he will seek reelection in 2018 as an independent, while noting he will continue to caucus with Democrats in the U.S. Senate. His shift reopens questions about earlier promises to run as a Democrat and clashes with internal Democratic
Sen. Bernie Sanders made it official during a Sunday trip to New Hampshire: he plans to run for reelection in 2018 as an independent.
Sanders framed the move as consistent with how he has long operated in Vermont.. “I am an independent and I have always run in Vermont as an independent. while I caucus with the Democrats in the United States Senate.. That’s what I’ve been doing for a long time and that’s what I’ll continue to do. ” he told a Fox News reporter.
The statement lands after Sanders previously confirmed he would run as a Democrat in future elections. In November 2015, during a campaign stop in New Hampshire, a reporter asked Sanders, “In future elections, potential future elections, will you also run as a Democrat?” Sanders responded, “Yes.”
The timing also revives scrutiny of Democratic Party leadership efforts aimed at Sanders during the 2016 presidential campaign.. The article points to “one of the controversial DNC emails” published by Wikileaks. describing former chairwoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz complaining that Sanders “has never been a member of the Democratic Party and has no understanding of what we do.”
Sanders’ independent stance today runs into an earlier concern that drove criticism during his presidential bid: that he was switching affiliations to improve his chances of winning the presidency.. The account emphasizes that Sanders had not been a registered Democrat until he decided to run for president. despite caucusing with the party as an independent member of the U.S.. Senate.
The tension is sharpened by how the argument distinguishes Sanders’ history from the experiences of voters who identify as Democrats.. The piece says there are “millions of Americans” who see the label as a reflection of political values rather than a stigma. and argues that Sanders “enters and leaves the Democratic Party at his own convenience. ” which “implicitly insults” Democratic voters.
There’s also a direct dispute over what good faith looks like for candidates in party politics.. The article says there is “nothing. absolutely nothing. that justifies” the Democratic National Committee giving any candidate an advantage. while also insisting there is justification for Democratic establishment figures to distrust Sanders for not being “one of their own.”
The through-line is the sequence of promises and subsequent choices: Sanders said in November 2015 he would run as a Democrat, then later announced he would seek reelection in 2018 as an independent while continuing his Senate caucus with Democrats.
Whatever the motivations behind the moves, the piece concludes with a blunt line—Sanders may be right to oppose a rigged primary, but the account argues he is not right to disregard “good faith” toward the Democratic Party in his actions today.
Bernie Sanders 2018 reelection independent candidate Democratic National Committee DNC email Debbie Wasserman-Schultz New Hampshire Vermont U.S. Senate caucus