By Maurice Mitchell and Nelini Stamp for WFP

The last few days have been a whirlwind since we announced our endorsement for Senator Elizabeth Warren for President in the Democratic primary. We were immensely proud for WFP to have the opportunity to introduce Senator Warren at her 20,000-person rally in Washington Square Park, and to speak about our endorsement and the work ahead to CNN, the New York Times and many other outlets. We’ve been thrilled to see the response from thousands of WFP supporters who have already signed up to organize with WFP and Senator Warren.

Senator Warren is putting forward bold ideas to rewrite the rules of our rigged system and transform the nation to work for the many. Her proposals will make a difference in the lives of millions of working people. And she is an unrivaled storyteller and teacher who can explain to America how the system got broken, who broke it, and how to fix it. We’re eager to build a grassroots army for her.

We also have immense respect for Senator Bernie Sanders, who has been a trailblazer in so many ways. WFP was an early endorser for Sanders in the 2016 primary. Both Warren and Sanders are fighting for the world we want to see, and both have brought new and vital ideas into the political debate. Our endorsement of Senator Warren does not diminish our respect for Senator Sanders, and to be clear, we’re going to be relentlessly positive about both of them in the months ahead.

Here’s how we see the 2020 presidential race right now. The white nationalists have their own candidate, obviously. The corporate wing of the Democratic Party has theirs too. That’s why we felt it was so important to weigh in at this moment, and to get involved and start organizing. For us, the way to do that was to set up a fair endorsement process that reflects the Working Families Party we are building together.

We want to address that process and the outcome, since our decision has disappointed some Bernie supporters and also left people with some questions. We stand behind it fully. Let us tell you why.