Arpan Lobo

GRAND RAPIDS — An endorsement made over 30 years ago came full circle in West Michigan on Sunday.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson Jr. endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont at a rally in Grand Rapids on Sunday, March 8. Jackson told a crowd of several thousand gathered in the downtown Calder Plaza that Sanders’ record of fighting for civil rights throughout his life made him worthy of being the Democratic nominee.

“I stand with Bernie Sanders today because he stood with me,” Jackson said. “I stand here because he never lost his taste for justice for the people. I stand with him because he stands with you.”

Sanders endorsed Jackson when the latter ran for president in 1988. At the time, Sanders was mayor of Burlington, Vermont.

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Sanders, a Democratic Socialist, carried Kent County, where Grand Rapids is located, in his 2016 win in the Michigan Democratic Presidential Primary against eventual nominee Hillary Clinton. The Sanders campaign has made stops across the state ahead of the Tuesday, March 10 primary.

The Vermont senator is currently in what is essentially a two-candidate race with former Vice President Joe Biden for the party nomination. Michigan has 125 party delegates up for grabs, making it a key state for either candidate’s hopes of clinching the nomination. Biden and his surrogates have also made campaign stops in various parts of the state, including Grand Rapids.

In addition to Jackson, former Michigan gubernatorial candidate Abdul El-Sayed, former U.S. Senator Don Riegle and former United Auto Workers President Bob King spoke in support of Sanders at the Grand Rapids rally.

During the event, Sanders told supporters that his presidency would target discrimination of all forms in the U.S.