Bernie Sanders: Democrats Shouldn’t Be Surprised Middle Class ‘Abandoned’ Its ‘Disastrous Campaign’ For Trump

In a statement after the race was called for President-elect Donald Trump, the longtime progressive lawmaker issued a scathing rebuke of the Democratic Party, saying it has abandoned “working class” voters.

“It should come as no great surprise that a Democratic Party that has abandoned working class people would find that the working class has abandoned them,” Sanders wrote in a statement. “While the Democratic leadership defends the status quo, the American people are angry and want change. And they’re right.”

It should come as no great surprise that a Democratic Party that has abandoned working class people would find that the working class has abandoned them.

While the Democratic leadership defends the status quo, the American people are angry and want change.

And they are right. pic.twitter.com/lM2gSJmQFL

— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) November 6, 2024

“Will the big money interests and well-paid consultants who control the Democratic Party learn any real lessons from his disastrous campaign?” Sanders added later in the statement. “Do they have any ideas on how we can take over the increasingly powerful oligarchy that has so much economic and political power? Probably not.”

Sanders went on to call on those passionate about “grassroots democracy” and “economic justice” to have “serious policy discussions” in the coming weeks and months after the election.

On Tuesday, Trump swept several battleground states that Biden won in 2020 as supporters, notably young menappeared in large numbers. The shift reflects Bernie Sanders’ strong appeal to this demographic in 2016, despite Sanders’ more progressive platform.

Sanders has long advocated policies aimed at supporting the working class, from advocating for a $15 minimum wage to pushing for universal health care, making him a natural ally for voters frustrated with economic inequality. While he ultimately endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president in July, Sanders had initially withheld his support, seeking commitments from Harris on progressive issues important to the working class.