Brevard's Sanjay Patel joins Bernie Sanders campaign as Florida field director

Brevard Democratic Party official Sanjay Patel is joining the Bernie Sanders presidential campaign as its Florida field director.

Sanders, a U.S. senator from Vermont, is among the leading candidates for the Democratic nomination for president, coming off a strong showing in Tuesday's Iowa caucuses.

The Sanders campaign selected Patel, a Satellite Beach resident who is Brevard County's Democratic state committeeman, for a major role in its efforts in Florida, which is a key battleground state in the presidential race. A Democratic win in Florida will be important if their candidate has a chance to defeat Donald Trump in November.

Florida's presidential preference primary is March 17.

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In announcing his appointment, Patel said: "I’m excited to announce that I’ve joined the Bernie campaign as their Florida field director. As many of you know, I was initially inspired to get involved in politics because of Senator Sanders and his selfless, unwavering commitment to economic, social, racial and environmental justice for all of us.

"I was humbled to receive his endorsement when I ran for U.S. Congress in 2018, and now I’m honored to be a part of the team that will help elect him to the White House this November."

Patel was a Sanders delegate to the 2016 Democratic National Convention, where former U.S. Sen. and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton emerged as the Democratic nominee. Clinton lost to Trump that November.

In 2018, Patel was the Democratic nominee for Congress in Florida's 8th District, losing to incumbent Bill Posey. That district includes all of Brevard and Indian River counties and part of eastern Orange County.

In discussing his support of Sanders, Patel said: "I fundamentally believe the time has come to make health care a human right for every American; for our nation to take bold action on climate change; and to build a movement to create social, economic and environmental justice for all of us."

Patel said he is taking a leave of absence from his role with the Brevard Democratic Party "to focus fully" on the Sanders campaign.

Patel's wife, Stacey Patel, is the chair of the Brevard County Democratic Executive Committee.

In Tuesday's Iowa Democratic caucuses, Sanders finished virtually tied for first place with Pete Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana.

Dave Berman is government editor at FLORIDA TODAY.

Contact Berman at 321-242-3649 or dberman@floridatoday.com.

Twitter: @bydaveberman

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