Democrats Failed Working People on the Economy, So They Turned to Trump: Sanders

Influential US Senator Bernie Sanders has acknowledged that the Democratic Party has failed to meet the expectations of working-class Americans on economic issues. And that very failure, he said, pushed a section of voters towards President Donald Trump.

In a television interview on Saturday, Sanders was asked exactly what the Democrats had done wrong in losing working-class voters to Trump. In reply, the independent senator from Vermont said that at the root of what Trump did lies his assessment — that on economic issues, the Democratic Party has been unable to work for working people.

Sanders said the Democrats have much to be proud of on issues such as civil rights, women's rights, gay rights and the environment. But on working-class issues, he does not believe they have done a good job.

According to him, for years voters have heard the Democrats say — 'We will do this, we will do that, we will help you.' But in reality, it did not happen. The Democrats pushed forward trade deals that caused the United States to lose hundreds of thousands of well-paid manufacturing jobs. As a result, voters lost faith in the party — and, in Sanders's view, 'not unreasonably.'

He identified unfulfilled economic promises and job-destroying trade deals as the two main reasons working-class voters turned away. His remarks have brought to the fore once again a current of self-criticism that has long been running within the Democratic camp.

Reacting to Sanders's comments, Republican National Committee national press secretary Natalie Baldassarre sharply criticised the Democrats' economic policies. She alleged that the Democrats are more interested in appeasing their far-left base than in not abandoning working families. She said that a party which imposes more taxes on Americans, sends jobs abroad and destroys the country's industrial sector can no longer claim to be the party of the working class.

Voting statistics also give a picture of this tug-of-war. According to a 2024 voter analysis, among voters with an annual household income of $50,000 to $99,999, Trump defeated former Vice President Kamala Harris by 53 percent to 45 percent. On the other hand, among voters with an income of $100,000 or more, Harris was ahead by 53 to 46 percent.

The same analysis found that among voters who said they had fallen behind financially, Trump won by a margin of 29 points. And nearly 40 percent of voters identified inflation as the most important factor in their vote — nearly two-thirds of those voters chose Trump.

This is not the first time Sanders has accused the party of abandoning working people. After Trump's victory in the 2024 presidential election as well, he sharply criticised the Democratic Party.

With the midterm elections ahead, Sanders's frank admission may be uncomfortable for the Democrats, but it has raised anew an old question — the results of a large part of the coming contests will depend on how far the party can restore working-class voters' trust on the question of the economy.