Bernie Sanders does not self identify as a Democrat even though he is running as one in 2016.
Sanders, appearing on CNN’s “Wolf” Thursday, when asked directly if he was a “true Democrat” he evaded and hedged, “I’m going to be doing everything that I can to see that the Democratic Party is successful in November.”
Wolf Blitzer: She sounds as if she is getting a bit nervous about your dramatic surge in New Hampshire and now in Iowa. She says no repeatedly, “I am a proud democrat. I am a true Democrat.” She doesn’t mention you by name, but the implication is you’re not a Democrat, you’re an Independent. You’re a Socialist. That’s the implication I’m getting when I hear her say that.
Bernie Sanders: Well, look, it is no great secret, everybody knows it, you know it. I’m the longest serving Independent in the history of the United States Congress and I’m proud of that. People of Vermont sent me to Washington because they were unhappy with both political parties. I made a choice over four months ago as somebody who has caucused with the Democrats for my first day in the United States Congress. I was chairman of the Senate Veteran’s Committee, now ranking member in the Senate, worked very closely with Democrats that I would run within the Democratic Primary and caucus process. And we’re doing well.
Blitzer: So are you a proud Democrat and a true Democrat as she says she is?
Sanders: I’m going to be doing everything that I can to see that the Democratic Party is successful in November. And let me say this, some people say, well, Bernie, you can’t win this election and let me repeat what I said before. In November, the Republicans didn’t win the election. The Democrats lost the election because the voter turnout was abysmally low. Low-income people not voting. Eighty percent of young people not voting. Wolf, if you come to the rallies we hold, what you’re going to see is a lot of working class people. You’re going to see a lot of young people who are now prepared to get involved in the political process. And the way the Democrats win not only the White House but the Congress and legislatures and governor seats is when we have large voter turnout. I think I could do a good job in expanding the voter turnout.