News Release

Sanders Delegates See Clinton VP Pick Causing Clash

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The group RootsAction.org states: “The first major survey of Bernie Sanders delegates reveals big concerns about Hillary Clinton’s pending choice of a vice presidential candidate, with many delegates expressing their willingness to publicly denounce prospective running-mates and even protest on the convention floor.”

See Daily Caller: “Survey: Bernie Delegates Would Hate It If Hillary Picks One Of These People For VP.” Truthdig reports on the survey: “The six potential Clinton running mates listed were: Tim Kaine, junior Virginia senator; Julian Castro, Housing and Urban Development secretary; Mark Warner, senior Virginia senator; Cory Booker, New Jersey senator; retired Adm. James Stavridis; and Adm. Mike Mullen, former Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman. All of them received “Not Acceptable” survey scores of 72 percent or higher. Sen. Mark Warner garnered the highest, with 91.6 percent of the delegates stating he would be an unacceptable vice presidential pick.” See survey at “First survey of Sanders delegates: potential clash ahead.”

KAREN BERNAL, nekochan99[at]hotmail.com, @karenbernal5
Bernal, a delegate from Sacramento who was elected as co-representative of the Sanders delegation from California, commented: “We Sanders delegates represent millions of progressive voters and activists. This survey suggests that a large proportion of the base that delivered 23 states and 13 million votes for Senator Sanders would be repelled by the potential running-mates for Secretary Clinton who are now being most widely touted. Can any Democratic presidential candidate afford to do without solid support from this base in a general election? That is the question Secretary Clinton and her advisers should think long and hard about.”

DONNA SMITH, donna[at]pdamerica.org, JEFF COHEN, jeffco[at]hvc.rr.com, @Roots_Action
The nationwide survey was conducted by the independent Bernie Delegates Network, an initiative launched by RootsAction.org in partnership with Progressive Democrats of America. Cohen is co-founder of RootsAction. Smith, director of PDA, said: “While Trump has moved to unify his party by selecting a running-mate who is trusted by the Republican activist base and who had endorsed his top opponent, we fear that Secretary Clinton is looking in the wrong direction for her running-mate. Democratic and independent voters throughout the nation could be lost if the party’s presidential ticket fails to truly reflect strong progressive positions.”

The survey found that the vast majority of surveyed delegates said that — if Clinton “selects as her vice presidential running-mate one of the individuals whom you’ve marked as unacceptable or someone politically similar” — they would “seriously consider participating” in one or both of these actions:

— “Denouncing the VP pick as a clear indication that Hillary Clinton does not intend to seek common ground with the progressive ideals and positions of the Bernie Sanders campaign.”

— “Nonviolently and emphatically protesting in the convention hall during Clinton’s acceptance speech.”

See Cohen’s commentary on the survey on Common Dreams.