Holy hell. Bernie Sanders has just moved to within 0.3% of Joe Biden in the Democratic Primary race nationally, according to Real Clear Politics’ polling average, thanks in part to a new poll out today from Quinnipiac:
This turn of events is unspeakably significant, as New Hampshire is about to go to the polls following a very acrimonious week coming out of Iowa, where Bernie and Pete essentially tied, but the AP is still refusing to call the race either way, and given the need for Democrats to unify as soon as possible behind a candidate and focus on beating Trump.
I canvassed for Bernie all weekend in NH, and the number one question I heard from people who liked Bernie as a potential choice but were still undecided was whether Bernie could actually win the nomination and the presidency. The answer is that yes, the more people get to know Bernie, the more they like him and his agenda, and many people are really just starting to pay attention to him as a serious contender following his strong Iowa showing and the fact that we’re now in the swing of the contests. But man oh man how I wish I had had this poll and polling average to point to when responding to that question while canvassing over the weekend, along with his 1.5 million individual, working class donors and best-in-field fundraising numbers (because Bloomberg can spend as much of his own money as he pleases, but he can’t purchase a credible Democratic track record or the ability to unify the party). It was easy selling people on Bernie without it. Imagine now, with this data point to refute the number one doubt in everyone's mind I talked to about Bernie who would otherwise happily vote for him?
Folks, it is literally crunch time. We can’t take our foot off the gas for even a second. Super Tuesday is just 3 weeks away and after that, 38% of the national delegates will have been apportioned. Enter Bloomberg, no less, who has not qualified for any of the earlier ballots. We have to win huge against him in California, Texas, etc., just like we have done against Biden in Iowa and will do against both Biden and Pete in NH, if the latest polling is correct. If we want to ensure no nonsense is afoot at the convention, we must continue to run strong LONG past Super Tuesday, and win an outright majority of pledged delegates. That is not only possible, it is happening. We just have to keep WORKING:
Bernie volunteer options, in order of importance:
1. If you’re in New Hampshire, Nevada, South Carolina, or a Super Tuesday state: find an event near you: events.BernieSanders.com - Download BERN and add everyone you know and ask them to support Bernie: https://app.berniesanders.com/ The app has helpful information and sends you important reminders like telling your friends about registration deadlines, etc.
2. If you’re not in one of those upcoming states, the most important thing you can do is get to one of those upcoming states, especially NV, SC, CA and MA. Take the “Bernie Journey” and travel there to knock on doors: https://act.berniesanders.com/signup/…
3. If you can’t get there in person, make calls to early states. You can do it on your own from home, there’s a chatbox if you need help, and there’s a community on Slack of other callers to talk to. As a “coastal, urban elite” with a small child, I have mainly been volunteering in this way, and it is super easy and even quite fun at times. https://berniesanders.com/call
4. VOTE EARLY! Early voting info (and general 50 state voting info).