On Tuesday, February 19th, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders announced his second presidential bid for the 2020 elections. Following a strong Democratic run in 2016, Sanders promised to enact the ideas he formerly advocated, such as the $15 nationwide minimum wage, universal healthcare access, and free public college tuition, if elected.

  After verbally attacking President Trump on the Vermont Public Radio Tuesday morning, calling him a “pathological liar” and “an embarrassment to our country,” Sanders joins the Democratic candidates pool for 2020 with fellow senators Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris, Cory Booker, Kirsten Gillibrand and Amy Klobuchar. Within 24 hours of his announcement, Sanders successfully raised $6 million upon launching his presidential campaign.

  During the interview, Sanders expressed his intention and vision for the future saying, “And what I promise to do is, as I go around the country, is to take the values that all of us in Vermont are proud of — a belief in justice, in community, in grassroots politics, in town meetings — that [is] what I [am] going to carry all over this country.”

  Grace Fitzer (10), a consistent follower of political news, said, “I personally support Bernie Sanders’ endeavor to run for president again in 2020. If I could vote, I would probably vote for him. In general, I think this time around he [will] have a better chance of winning the primary, given he has previously run and has a lot of support.”

  Unlike Sanders’ 2016 presidential run, his 2020 run is expected to be more heavily concentrated on racial and gender inequality as his Vermont radio interview suggested. His campaign manager, Jeff Weaver, is expected to play another senior role to clear the path for the diversity of senior aides, but he will not be returning as campaign manager.

  Regarding the current political situation, Kayla Luis (10), voiced her opinion saying, “Personally, I like to remain neutral on political issues, however I believe it is important for the leader of our country to have solid virtues and ethical standards regardless of his/her political party.”

  While some democrats predict that Sanders will face challenges due to the growing 2020 field, many other supporters are rooting for his triumph.