Has Bernie Sanders revolutionized U.S. politics?

What’s happening

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders suspended his presidential campaign on Wednesday, effectively ceding the Democratic presidential nomination to former Vice President Joe Biden. 

“I cannot in good conscience continue to mount a campaign that cannot win and which would interfere with the important work required of all of us in this difficult hour,” said Sanders in a live stream from his Vermont home. 

The self-identified democratic socialist was among the frontrunners after strong showings in the first three primary states. But his fortunes turned when several of his moderate competitors dropped out of the race, which allowed Biden to consolidate support and build an overwhelming delegate lead. 

Sanders has been runner-up in two consecutive primary cycles. Although he lost the presidential nomination to Hillary Clinton in 2016, the race was far more competitive than expected and solidified Sanders as one of the most prominent progressive voices in the country. 

Why there’s debate

To some observers, Sanders is one of the most influential politicians in modern American history. Sanders has been credited with shifting the entire Democratic Party to the left through his unapologetic promotion of initiatives like Medicare for All, free college and the Green New Deal. His criticism of establishment Democrats pushed the moderate wing of the party — including Biden — much further to the left, supporters argue. 

Sanders has also played a key role in the rise of a young, multicultural movement of politicians like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez who may become the face of the party in the near future. 

Sanders’s detractors say his influence on the minds of Democratic voters has been overstated, as evidenced by the party selecting a moderate establishment candidate in Biden as its nominee. Sanders also came up short in his promise to bring millions of new voters into the electorate, they argue.

Some of his critics say Sanders has ultimately had a negative impact on his party by forcing his fellow Democrats to adopt socialist policies that will ultimately hurt their electoral chances and would be harmful to the country if enacted. 

What’s next

Despite ending his campaign, Sanders said he would keep his name on primary ballots in an effort to accrue delegates and press his policy agenda at the Democratic convention. He pledged, however, to throw his support behind Biden in the general election. “Together, standing united, we will go forward to defeat Donald Trump,” he said. 

Perspectives

Sanders brought socialism back into mainstream American politics

“The most important legacy of Bernie Sanders’s political revolution has been making socialism a force in American politics once again. Most young Bernie supporters would have to go back to the days of the great-grandparents for the last time someone could say that. It is a truly extraordinary achievement. Now, a majority of young people in America — America! — prefer socialism to capitalism.” — Ronan Burtenshaw, Jacobin

He transformed the Democratic Party’s agenda

“Sanders has unquestionably changed the landscape of American politics. Since his run in 2016, several ideas that he brought to the fore have become part of the core platform of the Democratic Party’s progressive wing, including Medicare for All, free public college, a $15-an-hour minimum wage and aggressive spending to combat climate change.” — Hunter Walker, Yahoo News

His talk of a political revolution was largely hype

“The rationale for Sanders’s 2020 campaign — that he could secure massive turnout among young people and the pan-ethnic working class by pitching a quasi-revolutionary message, while also mounting a challenge to Donald Trump’s claim to low-education white voters — has proven to be delusional.” — Theodore Kupfer, National Review

A potential Biden presidency will more liberal because of Sanders’s influence

“Biden’s appeal to Sanders voters suggests he may be willing to absorb some of the best ideas from Sanders – and other candidates. It’s a pragmatic approach, rather than a dogmatic consistency, that may bring along their supporters, too. That may be exactly what he will need to do to beat Trump in November.” — Adam Hodges, The Conversation

His failure proved that the country doesn’t want socialist leaders

“Sanders did one thing further: He also demonstrated that, as radical as it has become, the Democratic Party of 2020 is not as ready for socialism as it once seemed.” — Editorial, Washington Examiner

He invigorated a generation of young voters

“Sanders can rightfully lay claim to having won the ideological debate. He has also won the future: His strong majority support among voters under 45 reflects the promise of a new generation that will drive change.” — Robert L. Borosage, The Nation

He helped break the Democratic Party from its self-defeating pragmatism

“Just as the election of Barack Obama opened the Democrats to new possibilities in candidates, the Sanders campaign reopened the party to old ideas come new again. Between the two of them, over the last decade, they taught progressives and a big piece of the Democratic Party how to be impatient again.” — Charles P. Pierce, Esquire

He helped limit the influence of wealthy campaign donors

“He has changed the way Democrats campaign: Candidates are now meant to be embarrassed by big-dollar donors.” — Sydney Ember, New York Times

His vision will be carried on by the next generation of progressive leaders

“The greatest accomplishment of the Sanders campaign has less to do with moving good ideas out of the “radical” category and into the mainstream and more to do with inspiring the people who will carry those ideas forward.” — John Nichols, The Atlantic

He shouldn’t get sole credit for the popularity of progressive politics

“Sanders also benefited from a shift in opinion that he encouraged but did not invent: the growing disenchantment of younger Americans with capitalism in the wake of the Great Recession.” — E.J. Dionne Jr., Washington Post

Reference: Yahoo News