Bernie Sanders just dropped out of the presidential race—here’s what’s next for the election

Today, April 8th, Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont suspended his Democratic presidential campaign. Due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, he spoke to his supporters via live stream, which he posted on Twitter. Former Vice President Joe Biden is now the presumptive nominee for the Democratic Party. Let’s break down Sanders’ announcement and what this means for voters.

“I cannot in good conscience continue to mount a campaign that cannot win and which would interfere with the important work required of all of us in this difficult hour,” Sanders said in today’s live stream, according to The New York Times.

The former nominee did give some insight on how the election, as well as his ideas, would move forward. Sanders agreed to work with Biden to “move our progressive ideas forward,” and “then together, standing united, we will go forward to defeat Donald Trump.”

Sanders was mathematically unlikely to secure the nomination after losing to Biden in the South Carolina, Michigan, and Florida primaries. However, his name will still appear on your ballot if you live in a state that has not yet held its primary election. (Many states were postponed due to coronavirus. Find the date of your state’s election here.)

So, technically, Bernie supporters can still vote for him in the remaining primary elections, though Biden will be the presidential nominee. We’ll explain.

Sanders hopes to continue to earn delegates at the Democratic National Convention as a way to show that people stand behind his progressive platform.

“While Vice President Biden will be the nominee,” Sanders said, “we must continue working to assemble as many delegates as possible at the Democratic convention, where we will be able to exert significant influence over the party platform and other functions.”

The Sanders campaign brought progressive politics further into the mainstream and proved that it’s possible to run a successful presidential campaign without donations from corporate donors.

“I want to express to each of you my deep gratitude for helping to create an unprecedented grassroots political campaign that has had a profound impact in changing our nation,” Sanders said, per USA Today. “Together we have transformed the American consciousness as to what kind of nation we can become and taking this country a major step forward in the never-ending struggle for economic justice, social justice, racial justice, and economic justice.”

This was Sanders’ second race for the White House. He ran in 2016 primaries against Hillary Clinton.

The Democratic National Convention has been postponed from July until August 17th. There, Biden will become the official nominee for president.

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