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US Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and New York City Mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani hold hands during the town hall "Fighting Oligarchy: A Town Hall on Making New York City Affordable" at Brooklyn College in the Brooklyn borough of New York City on September 6, 2025. (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)
Sanders, Mamdani Bring 'Fighting the Oligarchy' Tour to Brooklyn
Sanders blasted Democratic Party leaders for withholding their support from Zohran Mamdani
Sep 07, 2025
U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) has been crisscrossing the country on his Fighting the Oligarchy Tour, a series of fiery town halls meant to rally progressive voices from coast to coast. On Saturday night, the movement came home for Sanders, as he returned to his alma mater, Brooklyn College, to share the stage with New York City mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani in a packed town hall that echoed with calls for change.
Watch Saturday night's rally here:
Sanders blasted Democratic Party leaders for withholding their support from Zohran Mamdani, hailing Mamdani instead as “the future of the Democratic Party.”
“I find it hard to understand how the major Democratic leaders of New York state are not supporting the Democratic candidate,” Sanders said. “If a candidate started at 2% in the polls, gets 50,000 volunteers, creates enormous excitement, gets young people involved in the political process, gets nontraditional voters to vote, Democratic leaders would be jumping up and down!”
“So we’ve got another fight on our hands,” Mr. Sanders said. “And that is the future of the Democratic Party.”
Sanders and Mamdani turned their fire on Donald Trump’s agenda and the wealthy donors bankrolling efforts to derail Mamdani’s campaign. Sanders warned that America’s richest wield far too much influence, casting the mayoral race as “a test case of whether or not democracy can prevail.”
Sanders highlighted that Mamdani’s rising popularity—and the White House’s backlash—were signs of a progressive wave gaining unstoppable momentum.
“What they fear is Mamdani becoming a model for what could sweep across the country,” Sanders told the cheering supporters.
New York faces the clearest choice of this election year:Zohran Mamdani and Bernie Sandersv.Andrew Cuomo and Donald Trump
[image or embed]
— John Nichols (@nicholsuprising.bsky.social) September 6, 2025 at 10:48 PM
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U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) has been crisscrossing the country on his Fighting the Oligarchy Tour, a series of fiery town halls meant to rally progressive voices from coast to coast. On Saturday night, the movement came home for Sanders, as he returned to his alma mater, Brooklyn College, to share the stage with New York City mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani in a packed town hall that echoed with calls for change.
Watch Saturday night's rally here:
Sanders blasted Democratic Party leaders for withholding their support from Zohran Mamdani, hailing Mamdani instead as “the future of the Democratic Party.”
“I find it hard to understand how the major Democratic leaders of New York state are not supporting the Democratic candidate,” Sanders said. “If a candidate started at 2% in the polls, gets 50,000 volunteers, creates enormous excitement, gets young people involved in the political process, gets nontraditional voters to vote, Democratic leaders would be jumping up and down!”
“So we’ve got another fight on our hands,” Mr. Sanders said. “And that is the future of the Democratic Party.”
Sanders and Mamdani turned their fire on Donald Trump’s agenda and the wealthy donors bankrolling efforts to derail Mamdani’s campaign. Sanders warned that America’s richest wield far too much influence, casting the mayoral race as “a test case of whether or not democracy can prevail.”
Sanders highlighted that Mamdani’s rising popularity—and the White House’s backlash—were signs of a progressive wave gaining unstoppable momentum.
“What they fear is Mamdani becoming a model for what could sweep across the country,” Sanders told the cheering supporters.
New York faces the clearest choice of this election year:Zohran Mamdani and Bernie Sandersv.Andrew Cuomo and Donald Trump
[image or embed]
— John Nichols (@nicholsuprising.bsky.social) September 6, 2025 at 10:48 PM
U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) has been crisscrossing the country on his Fighting the Oligarchy Tour, a series of fiery town halls meant to rally progressive voices from coast to coast. On Saturday night, the movement came home for Sanders, as he returned to his alma mater, Brooklyn College, to share the stage with New York City mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani in a packed town hall that echoed with calls for change.
Watch Saturday night's rally here:
Sanders blasted Democratic Party leaders for withholding their support from Zohran Mamdani, hailing Mamdani instead as “the future of the Democratic Party.”
“I find it hard to understand how the major Democratic leaders of New York state are not supporting the Democratic candidate,” Sanders said. “If a candidate started at 2% in the polls, gets 50,000 volunteers, creates enormous excitement, gets young people involved in the political process, gets nontraditional voters to vote, Democratic leaders would be jumping up and down!”
“So we’ve got another fight on our hands,” Mr. Sanders said. “And that is the future of the Democratic Party.”
Sanders and Mamdani turned their fire on Donald Trump’s agenda and the wealthy donors bankrolling efforts to derail Mamdani’s campaign. Sanders warned that America’s richest wield far too much influence, casting the mayoral race as “a test case of whether or not democracy can prevail.”
Sanders highlighted that Mamdani’s rising popularity—and the White House’s backlash—were signs of a progressive wave gaining unstoppable momentum.
“What they fear is Mamdani becoming a model for what could sweep across the country,” Sanders told the cheering supporters.
New York faces the clearest choice of this election year:Zohran Mamdani and Bernie Sandersv.Andrew Cuomo and Donald Trump
[image or embed]
— John Nichols (@nicholsuprising.bsky.social) September 6, 2025 at 10:48 PM
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