Many Bernie Sanders supporters seem to have accepted the fact that former Vice President Joe Biden will be the Democratic Party’s nominee for the presidency. However, that doesn’t mean they intend to get out and vote for him.
After the Vermont senator lost every single state in the March 17 primary contest, many supporters are vowing that they will either stay home or write in Sen. Sanders’ name on their ballots. Their lack of support could very well cost the former Vice President the election just as it did for Hillary Clinton in 2016.
Given the far-left nature of the Sanders campaign, it’s not surprising that the “Bernie bros” are boycotting the election. However, one of the most common reasons supporters give for not lining up behind the man who will most likely be their party’s nominee is the fact that they are disgusted with the way the Democratic Party has opposed Sen. Sanders at every turn.
While Biden has won recent primaries fair and square, there has clearly been a lot of “wheeling and dealing” behind the scenes to get the former VP where he is today. All other moderate Democratic candidates dropped out and endorsed him right before the all-important Super Tuesday primaries. Progressive candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren stayed in the race just long enough to pull support away from Sen. Sanders during the Super Tuesday primaries, even though she knew that she had no hope of winning a single state.
Warren, who has been a vocal ally of Sanders in the past, was expected to support the Vermont senator when her campaign ended. Unlike every other candidate, she refused to issue any endorsement, and continues to stay quiet on the matter.
While some would dismiss Sanders supporters as being a vocal minority of the party, research clearly shows that this “minority” cost Hillary Clinton the election in 2016. About 12% of Sanders’ supporters voted for President Trump in 2016, and statistics show that President Trump’s narrow wins in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania would have been impossible if that small percentage hadn’t crossed party lines. Democrat voters effectively punished their party leaders.
Democrats hoping Texas continues to trend blue believe this treatment will cost the party the support it needs. This would not only make it difficult for the former VP to win the presidency, but could also help the GOP keep control of the Senate.
Biden is undoubtedly doing well in his party’s primary process. Even considering the DNC’s preferential treatment, it is also true that voters in places like Florida are rejecting Bernie Sanders socialism. However, this doesn’t change the fact that Biden needs this demographic to win.
Even in the face of a global pandemic and a faltering economy, Democrats seem hell-bent on re-electing President Donald Trump. In the end, their downfall will be their own doing — again.
