Sen. Bernie Sanders’ 2020 presidential campaign, suspended April 8, was never just about winning the nomination. It was also about bringing awareness to the deep inequalities that exist within our country.
The time has come for the formation of a third political party, based on ideals that people like the Vermont senator have advocated for. Many IU students would benefit from a number of policies that progressive politicians advocate for, such as student loan forgiveness. I call on students to reject both the Democrat and Republican parties and join a movement that works toward true economic and social justice.
Some in Bloomington are already embracing this idea. The Green Party of Monroe County is reportedly preparing to support candidates for the 2020 election cycle, and students are welcome to join the movement. Strengthening the Green Party, an organization that already has roots but is uncorrupted by corporate influence, could be the way to move progressive ideas forward. The party’s values include respect for the environment and grassroots organizing, and it advocates for policies such as the Green New Deal.
On the federal level, however, confronting corruption within both parties has been more challenging. "Medicare for All,” the Green New Deal — these are hallmark policies of what Sanders calls a political revolution. But while Sanders doesn’t hesitate to criticize figures within Republican leadership such as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, he has been much more sporadic and lukewarm when it comes to calling out Democrats, such as Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, who have expressed negative attitudes toward progressive ideas.
It is likely that Sanders’ reluctance to attack Democrats on their hypocrisy and corruption stemmed, at least in part, from the fact that he was seeking the party’s nomination. He had to play nice in order to win.
It didn’t work. The Democratic establishment joined forces to help former Vice President Joe Biden win the nomination when potential moderate spoilers Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg both withdrew from the race and endorsed the former vice president March 2, right before Super Tuesday.
The failure of Sanders’ campaign isn’t an indictment of his ideas, which remain quite popular with Democratic voters. Rather, it is an indictment of how Sanders chose to run his campaign. Among the mistakes he made was the choice to run within the confines of the Democratic Party in the first place. I suspect a third-party run with a strong anti-establishment message would have courted the non-voters he was hoping to sway to his side, while also drawing Democratic voters who largely agree with his policy positions.
There is no longer a people’s party in the U.S., if there ever was. Both Democrats and Republicans have been courted by big donors, and their policy positions have shifted in kind. Faith in Congress is getting weaker by the day, with the national approval rating at a low 22%.
Only 58.1% of eligible voters participated in the 2016 presidential election. Comparatively, the voter turnout in 2008 was 61.6%. According to the Atlantic/Aspen Institute, approximately 71% of Americans are rightfully convinced that most politicians are in the business of representing the wealthy. These are signs of an American working class that has grown weary and disillusioned with politics.
If progressives were to create a party completely separate from both Democrats and Republicans, funded by working people, it would be more trustworthy. There is no denying the energy that has come from those who align themselves with the progressive movement specifically, such as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. Over the past four years in particular, numerous progressives, many of whom support leftist ideas such as Medicare for All and overturning Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission, have run for office.
Most of these progressives are running as Democrats, but this is a mistake. If such progressives truly want to follow in Sanders’ footsteps, they ought to forgo the Democratic Party altogether, as Sanders did in 1981, the year he won his mayoral seat in Burlington, Vermont, as an independent.
Such a movement cannot be formed if only scattered groups of people participate. Those who believe in progressive ideals must be organized. If a third party is to be formed, students — and young people in general — must be willing to step up and form a coalition.
Although it’s unlikely a third party will be a major player this election cycle, I encourage students to vote however they’d like in November. In the meantime, we can start organizing a movement that will bring something new to the political sphere in the future. We are intelligent, open-minded and fierce, and I have no doubt we have what it takes to help change our country.
Molly Hayes (she/her) is a sophomore studying English. She plans to earn a Master of Library Science.
