Bernie Sanders has quit the Democrats and will return to life as an independent senator after losing the race for the party's presidential nomination to Hillary Clinton.

Sanders was an independent before running for president and appeared uncomfortable calling himself a Democrat during his campaign.

'I was elected as an independent. I’ll stay two years more as an independent,' the socialist told Bloomberg, referring to the time left in his term as a senator in Vermont.

Scroll down for video

Bernie Sanders has quit the Democrats and will return to life as an independent senator after losing the race for the party's presidential nomination to Hillary Clinton

Despite being an independent, Sanders was accepted as a candidate for the Democrats after announcing his intention to run for president.

More than 13million people voted for Sanders in the party's primaries and caucuses, and Clinton will now be hoping she can hang on to those voters.

Sanders has a long affiliation with the party despite not being a member, with senior Democrats endorsing him when he ran for Senate in 2005.

However, the news that he intends on returning to being an independent suggests that he may not want - or be in line for - a position within a possible Clinton government following the election.

Debbie Wasserman Schultz resigned over the leaked email scandal, but Sanders has called for more heads to roll within the Democratic Party

Many within the party were furious at Sanders being allowed to run for office under their name, with voicemails released by WikiLeaks revealing that some donors did not want him to speak at the convention.

Hacked emails revealed last weekend that senior officials - including Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz - were biased against Sanders' campaign.

Wasserman Schultz was forced to resign on the eve of the party's convention following the scandal.

After confirming he would return to being an independent, Sanders called for more heads to roll in the Democratic party over the email leak.

'We need a DNC which has as very different direction,' he said.

'I honestly don’t know many of the people there. But my guess is we’re going to need new leadership, a new direction and new personnel.'

An aide who worked on Sanders' campaign for the nomination confirmed his plans.

'He ran for president as a Democrat but was elected to a six-year term in the Senate as an independent,' the source said.

Scores of Sanders supporters subscribe to the 'Bernie or bust' movement and do not intend to vote for Clinton in the election.

Sanders used his speech at the convention on Monday to urge Democrats to rally behind Clinton.