Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders’ visit to Oakland came with the joyous strains of gospel music, loud cheers in a variety of languages, and a sea of blue posters splashed with the presidential candidate’s name.

Not to mention a little shout-out to the hometown fans.

After meeting with actor Danny Glover and San Francisco Supervisor Jane Kim at the Allen Temple Baptist Church in East Oakland early Monday afternoon, Sanders fired up the crowd at a downtown Oakland rally when he donned a yellow Warriors cap.

“Do I have the right hat?” Sanders asked to laughter. When he finished speaking, he took off for the Oracle Arena to catch the second half of the Warriors’ Game 7 victory.

But there was plenty of serious talk from Sanders with California’s high-stakes Democratic presidential primary just a week away.

“When we began this campaign, the pundits had determined in their never-failing wisdom that our campaign was going to be a fringe campaign,” he told the enthusiastic crowd in Frank Ogawa Plaza, outside Oakland City Hall. “They didn’t think we would go very far. Well, a year has come and gone, and here we are.”

Thousands of people, many dressed in blue T-shirts and hats printed with “Feel the Bern,” turned out for the hour-long downtown rally. The line to get into the event wrapped around six city blocks.

Issues relevant to Oakland

Oakland was the presidential hopeful’s latest stop in a grueling series of high-profile rallies across the state. From the pulpit and the podium, Sanders spoke about unemployment, the cost of living and the country’s dependence on jails.

His cries for a political revolution against what he calls corrupt politics sparked cheers and applause at both locales, from churchgoers crammed into the choir pews to young people ringed around City Hall. Sanders discussed issues geared toward Oakland: incarceration rates, police shootings and the need for universal health care.

Sanders talked about poverty rates across the nation, noting that while 22 percent of youth are poor, the rate is higher for minority communities.

“It might be a little bit smart to be investing in jobs and education for those young people instead of jails,” Sanders said. “Every person in this room and country should be profoundly humiliated by the fact that we have more people in jail in America than any other country on Earth.”

Emmy Dissett, 34, of West Oakland waved a poster in the air and cheered.

“I love that he is here,” she said, grinning. “He is an amazing guy. He’s in a $99 suit and is so relatable. Other politicians haven’t given much attention to Oakland. He cares about all of us: the women, the minorities, the young people.”

Sanders’ California rallies have drawn thousands of enthusiastic supporters, helping tighten the primary race between him and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. A poll last week by the Public Policy Institute of California found Clinton with a narrowing 46 to 44 percent lead over Sanders.

With Clinton holding a solid lead in pledged and unpledged delegates, California is a must-win state for Sanders if he is to convince delegates at the July national convention in Philadelphia that he is the party’s best hope of beating Donald Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee. A growing number of independent voters could decide the final result, the poll showed.

‘He is going to bring change’

At the church, Sanders fielded questions about police shootings, an issue at the forefront in the Bay Area, especially since San Francisco Police Chief Greg Suhr was forced to resign in May after an officer shot an apparently unarmed black woman near the Bayview district. Police departments across the country need to provide more diversity and training in de-escalating tense confrontations, Sanders said.

“What kind of country are we when mothers are afraid to let their kids go out and play?” he said. “We do not have the culture which says that lethal force, shooting somebody, is the last response, not a first response. Too often the response is killing someone rather than coming up with other ways of dealing with the problem.”

Some residents were impressed that Sanders even came to their community, said Annette Haugabook, 56, of Oakland, who sat near a wall of stained glass windows waiting for the senator to arrive.

“I am in support of Sanders because he is going to bring change,” she said. “The fact that he would come to East Oakland means a lot to me because a lot of candidates won’t. You have to come to my community so I know you’re serious about change.”

Community often ignored

Clinton also has paid visits to Oakland in recent weeks, including for a roundtable on urban issues at a Jack London Square restaurant last week.

East Oakland is often neglected in the scope of national politics, said Aïdah Rasheed of Oakland, 31, a Muslim woman who said she tries to support other religious communities.

“Not a lot of politicians are interested in talking to people from this community,” she said. “I am praying people will come out and support his campaign because he is trying to change the land we live in and the way we deal with politics.”

Sanders said his grassroots efforts would infuse energy into the election process and could get him to the White House.

“We are trying to run a campaign here in California that, to the best of my knowledge, is unprecedented,” Sanders said. “We have worked at 23 rallies all over the state. I believe we have an excellent chance to win here in California and to win big.”