Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) ended his presidential campaign last week and has endorsed former vice-President, Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination. Following the news, Sanders’ supporters expressed both frustration and devastation across social media platforms. Now, they must make the decision as to whether or not they will support Biden come the general election. Roughly 80% of all Sanders supporters have said that they will support Biden in November. Among Latinos, however, only 74% of Sander supporters find Biden to be a favorable candidate, posing the question: How will Biden fare among Latino voters in November?
We must come together to defeat the most dangerous president in modern history. I’m joining @JoeBiden‘s livestream with a special announcement. https://t.co/AC3zh3ChX3
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) April 13, 2020
Despite Biden’s likeability among Latinos, the enthusiasm that the Sanders campaign has garnered (in particular among Latino youth) is lacking in the Biden campaign. Nearly 90% of Senator Sanders supporters noted that they intended to vote in the 2020 election when he was still in the race. However, with Sander now out, Biden must attract his base to vote for him and the Democratic party. This may be where Biden will confront one of his biggest challenges: energizing young voters. More than 1 in 4 Sanders supporters find Biden to be an unfavorable candidate, raising questions as to whether Biden will be able to mobilize Latinos to show up to the polls. Biden’s record in politics is proving to be a major setback as many of Sanders supporters appear to take that into account when deciding whether or not to back the former Vice President. Nearly half of Latinos say they view past and present policies equally important when making their electoral decisions.
