Bernie Sanders
Showing Original Post only (View all)Relax—Bernie’s Supporters Will Back Hillary If She’s the Nominee [View all]
The ones who are consistent voters already, probably. But the newer and more alienated ones that Sanders is attracting will probably just stay home.
http://www.thenation.com/article/relax-bernies-supporters-will-support-hillary-if-shes-the-nominee/
But if history is any guide, a mass defection of Democrats and Dem-leaning independents is the last thing anyone should worry about. Weve seen this before and we know how it will play out.
Ironically, in 2008 it was Clinton supporters vowing to stay homeor vote for John McCainif Obama became the nominee. At the time, that same HuffPo columnist warned that balkanized Democrats could give the White House to John McCain. That May, primary exit polls found less than half of Hillary Clintons supporters in Indiana and North Carolina saying theyd consider voting for Obama in the general election. Even in early July, after Obama had secured the nomination, only 54 percent of Clinton backers said they planned to vote for him.
Those self-described PUMAsparty unity my assmay have stayed home by the dozens that November, but at the end of the day nine out of 10 Democrats supported Obama in an election that featured the highest turnout in 40 years. A similar dynamic played out with Howard Dean supporters in 2004.
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If he doesnt win the nomination, Sanders will endorse Clinton, urging his supporters to back her campaign. In all likelihood, hell actively campaign on her behalf. The Obamas, who enjoy sky-high approval ratings among Democrats, will also hit the campaign trail. And while Bill Clinton may be a liability in a primary fight, he remains a potent proxy against Republicans. The differences between the parties values will be clear.
So come November, Green Party candidate Jill Stein may pick up the votes of a handful of Sanders supporters in swing states, but the Democratic coalition is going to come out in force to stop Donald Trump or Ted Cruz. And thats a good thing, because, as acts of political extortion go, Bernie or Bust is incoherent. We dont just elect presidents, we elect around 2,000 people from one or the other party to serve in policy-making positions in the Executive Office of the President, and to head the agencies that make our government work.