Eliza Collins

USA TODAY

Bernie Sanders says that just being a woman isn't enough to get you elected.

Sanders was speaking to supporters in Boston Sunday when he was asked how a woman could become the second Latina senator in history.

"It's not good enough for somebody to say 'hey I'm a Latina vote for me' that is not good enough. I have to know whether that Latina is going to stand up with the working class of this country and is going to take on big money interests," Sanders said.

"It is not good enough for somebody to say, 'I'm a woman, vote for me.' No That is not good enough," the Vermont senator continued. "What we need is a woman who has the guts to stand up to Wall Street, to the insurance companies, to the drug companies, to the fossil fuel industries."

Sanders — who competed against Hillary Clinton during the Democratic primary but campaigned for her during the general election — called for candidates who are able to speak to working people.

"The working class of this country is being decimated — that's why Donald Trump won," Sanders said. "And what we need now are candidates who stand with those working people, who understand that real median family income has gone down."

Sanders ran as a Democrat for president but is an independent in the Senate. Last week he became the Democratic Party's "outreach" chair where he will lead the charge in trying to reach working-class voters.