Bernie Sanders Has Never Been Hotter. That Should Worry Democrats | Opinion

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As we approach the end of primary season, I read story last week proclaiming “Bernie Sanders has never been hotter.”
At 84 years old and after two failed presidential campaigns, Sanders is still filling arenas and raising millions, all while defying Democratic leaders and helping progressive candidates generate enormous excitement, if not primary wins. Even more so than Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, he has become the leader of a movement with a stronger foothold in Democratic politics than it had a decade ago.
Democrats shouldn’t underestimate what is happening, but they also shouldn’t confuse enthusiasm with electoral strength.
What we’re watching is the latest fight for the soul of the Democratic Party, except this time there is a leadership vacuum at the top. Say what you want about Nancy Pelosi. I disagreed with her on most policies, but she knew how to lead her party. She led Democrats with an iron fist for two decades.
Democrats don’t have anyone to play that role today, and Sanders, AOC and the socialist movement are filling that vacuum. When people on the left complain that even AOC has become “too mainstream,” you get a sense of how far the party has moved.
We’ve seen many DSA primary wins across the country, not only in New York City, but also Washington D.C., Colorado, and the latest in Florida with Angie Nixon pulling off an upset in the Democratic primary for Florida Senate.
But will any of this translate into votes beyond the primaries? We got a pretty good test of that over the last few weeks.
In Michigan, progressive Abdul El-Sayed had the backing of Sanders and AOC and appeared headed toward a convincing victory over Rep. Haley Stevens. An Emerson College poll had him ahead 54 percent to 39 percent. Instead, El-Sayed eked out a one-point win, just 14,893 votes out of more than 1.5 million cast. A win is a win, but the excitement didn’t translate into votes. At least not like expected.

Then there’s Wisconsin. Democratic socialist Francesca Hong led the Democratic gubernatorial field by 20 points in Marquette’s final poll. She finished with 39.3 percent, almost exactly where she had been polling, while David Crowley surged to 39.8 percent and beat her by a hair. Hong’s supporters showed up. She just didn’t expand beyond them.
And in Florida, the rest of the progressive wing did not follow suit and win alongside Nixon.
Remember the old adage: “Burn me once, shame on you, Burn me twice, shame on me.”
That should give Democrats something to think about heading into November. The movement can raise money, fill rallies and garner attention. But can it turn enthusiasm into votes beyond its base?
We’ve seen this movie before. In 2016, Sanders was a political phenomenon. Young voters packed his rallies, Bernie signs were everywhere and small-dollar contributions poured in. He shocked the political establishment, but Hillary Clinton still beat him by nearly four million votes.
Four years later, Sanders again had the money and enthusiasm. After Nevada, he looked like the frontrunner. Then Democrats consolidated around Joe Biden and Sanders lost again.
Post-2024 and in the absence of real leadership in Washington, Sanders has become the de facto public face of the Democrats, a party he left in 2020 to sit as an independent. He is the best-known leader and that should scare Democrats who will need to rely on independent voters to retake power in Washington.
Winning a Democratic primary is not the same as winning a battleground state or district. The electorate gets bigger, independents matter more and the influence of Saunders could become a double whammy for Democrats in tough races. They may not get the votes or money tied to his movement, but Republicans will ensure they get branded as part of “Bernie’s Socialist Party” regardless.
Republican ad makers will take the most controversial socialist proposal they can find and try to make every Democrat in America answer for it. There is no guarantee it will work, but the Democrats’ lack of a real leader has led to the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA)’s rising popularity and given Republicans a chance in the midterms.
Michigan and Wisconsin gave Democrats a warning and Republicans an opening. The DSA crowds are real and the enthusiasm is real. But are the votes?
“Bernie Sanders has never been hotter.” Democrats have already embraced the heat. The problem is they may now be stuck with the brand. Unless they find a way out, they may snatch defeat from the jaws of victory come November.
Jeff Burton is a Republican strategist and the co-founding partner at Maven Advocacy Partners.
The views expressed in this article are the writer’s own.