Dropped out of the primary on April 8 th 2020

B ernie Sanders has been a US senator from Vermont since 2007. Before that, he was a member of the US House of Representatives. After a long campaign—and, some supporters feel, a bitter defeat—against Hillary Clinton in 2016, Mr Sanders is hoping his democratic socialism will work even better at the second attempt. This time, however, voters who want a candidate who supports Medicare for all, sweeping economic reforms and so on have plenty of options. Without a clear policy agenda to set him apart, Mr Sanders might have to rely on his energy as a campaigner. He has been dogged by accusations that his campaign in 2016 was insufficiently friendly to women or non-whites. For these reasons, he will probably start behind his mark from last cycle. He is likely to stay in the race for a long time, though.