Democracy for America, the progressive political action committee behind the “Run Warren Run” campaign to get Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) to jump into the 2016 presidential race, announced Monday that it’s endorsing Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) for the party’s 2020 nomination.
Founded in 2004 by former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, DFA eventually backed Sanders’s presidential bid in 2016 after Warren declined to run. Though Warren is running in this election cycle, DFA announced in a statement Monday that its members had overwhelmingly voted to support Sanders again.
“Bernie Sanders has built a powerful multi-racial, multi-generational movement and we’re excited to join the campaign at this critical moment in the Democratic race,” DFA Chair Charles Chamberlain said in a statement.
Warren and Sanders are often compared with one another on the campaign trail, given their similar progressive political agendas. But Sanders has surged to the front of the Democratic pack, which has narrowed significantly in recent weeks following the first handful of presidential primary contests.
Sanders virtually tied for first place with former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who dropped out of the race Sunday, in the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary. He won in a landslide in the Nevada caucuses but trailed former Vice President Joe Biden for second place in the most recent primary in South Carolina.
Warren, on the other hand, has had disappointing showings in the caucuses and primaries so far. She hasn’t broken past third place in any of the contests and came in a distant fifth in South Carolina.
Sanders said in a statement that he is proud to have DFA’s support.
“They’ve led the fight to guarantee health care as a human right, protect and expand Social Security, and end our nation’s endless wars,” Sanders said. “Together, we will build a movement that sweeps Donald Trump out of the White House and transforms this country so that it works for the working class.”