On Thursday, June 9, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders vowed to work together with presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton to defeat presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump in the general election. Clinton garnered enough delegates to win the nomination this past Monday, June 6, surpassing 2,383 delegates.
Although Clinton’s 571 superdelegates will not officially cast their votes until the Democratic convention this July in Philadelphia, the Associated Press reports that all of Clinton’s superdelegates verbally committed to voting for her.
Sanders’ pledge to stand by Hillary Clinton in the general election eased concerns in the Democratic Party, as it quelled the fear that he would run as an independent and potentially split the party’s votes.
After meeting with President Obama this Thursday, Sanders made his priorities clear, saying he would “work as hard as I can to make sure that Donald Trump does not become president of the United States.”
Sanders also added that although he planned on continuing his campaign run, he would be meeting with Clinton in the future to discuss how to defeat Donald Trump and how to, “create a government which represents all of us and not just the 1%.”
President Obama himself endorsed Hillary Clinton in a public video released by the White House later that day.
“I don’t think there’s ever been someone so qualified to hold this office,” Obama said, adding that he was “fired up” to campaign with her. Obama will be joining Clinton for the first time on the campaign trail as she travels to Wisconsin this upcoming week.
In addition to the support of Bernie Sanders and the current president, Clinton also received heavy endorsements from Vice President Joe Biden and Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren.
“I’m ready to get in this fight and work my heart out for Hillary Clinton to become the next president of the United States,” Warren told MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, “and to make sure that Donald Trump never gets any place close to the White House.”
Warren and Clinton met this Friday, June 10, as a result of the endorsement.
