Former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham ClintonJeff Flake: Republicans 'should hold the same position' on SCOTUS vacancy as 2016 Momentum growing among Republicans for Supreme Court vote before Election Day Warning signs flash for Lindsey Graham in South Carolina MORE said Tuesday that she "will support the nominee" in 2020 when asked about her 2016 rival, Sen. Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersNYT editorial board remembers Ginsburg: She 'will forever have two legacies' Two GOP governors urge Republicans to hold off on Supreme Court nominee Sanders knocks McConnell: He's going against Ginsburg's 'dying wishes' MORE (I-Vt.).

The former secretary of State was asked at the Berlinale film festival — where she was promoting the new documentary about her, "Hillary" — about whether she would support a democratic socialist for the nomination, a scenario the Democratic establishment is increasingly nervous about as Sanders emerges as a clear front-runner.

“I’m going to wait and see who we nominate,” Clinton said, “I will support the nominee, and it won’t surprise you to hear me say that I think it’s imperative that we retire the incumbent.”

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Clinton and Sanders ran a hard-fought primary in 2016 prior to President Trump Donald John TrumpUS reimposes UN sanctions on Iran amid increasing tensions Jeff Flake: Republicans 'should hold the same position' on SCOTUS vacancy as 2016 Trump supporters chant 'Fill that seat' at North Carolina rally MORE's election. In a clip from the docuseries obtained by The Hollywood Reporter last month, Clinton is quoted saying “nobody likes” Sanders, with whom she worked with in the Senate.

“Nobody likes him, nobody wants to work with him, he got nothing done. He was a career politician,” she said. “It’s all just baloney and I feel so bad that people got sucked into it.”

Clinton has said in the past that she would support whoever the nominee is, though it was before Sanders’s campaign had shown its strength. The Vermont senator came in first in the Nevada caucuses and New Hampshire primary — and a close second in Iowa.

"I’ve said I’m going to support the nominee," Clinton told Variety last month. "But I do think it’s important to look at somebody’s record and look at what they’ve gotten done and see whether you agree with that or not. I think that’s what every voter paying attention should do."

When Variety asked about her critical comments on Sanders, she responded, "I think we did that interview about a year-and-a-half ago. I wasn’t thinking about the election by any means."