Bernie Sanders, the two-time presidential candidate, is barnstorming Iowa and Nebraska to rally voters against what he calls “the oligarchy” — the kind of high-profile offensive that typically signals a potential run for the White House.
But in Sanders’ case, he’s more likely paving the way for someone to follow in his footsteps.
Sanders isn’t interested in mounting a third presidential campaign, several friends and allies said. At the age of 83, they said, the Vermont senator is more concerned with laying the groundwork for another progressive — or progressives — to carry the torch in 2028.
“I have no doubt that that weighs heavily on his mind,” said Ben Cohen, a co-chair of Sanders’ 2020 campaign and co-founder of the ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s. “I have no doubt that that is a focus of his, as it would be with anyone who’s passionate about a campaign, who’s passionate about particular issues, and is reaching, according to the actuarial tables, the end of their lives.”
As Democrats struggle to find their bearings in the second Trump era, the internal debate over how to move forward could influence the party for years to come. Moderates have blamed liberal interest groups for the party’s defeat in 2024 and argued that Democrats must move to the center to win back swing voters. Sanders, along with other progressives and some centrists, contends the party lost because it abandoned working-class people.
At a moment when the party lacks a clear leader, Sanders’ voice could carry more weight among Democrats than usual. He is one of the few people on the left who can break through the fragmented media environment and command national attention.
Sanders is hoping to use that megaphone to invigorate a demoralized liberal base to fight back against President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk as they slash the federal government, his allies said.
“I think he’s trying to inspire a very strong resistance to the oligarchy,” said RoseAnn DeMoro, a longtime friend of Sanders and a former labor leader.
Asked whether Sanders views the response by Democratic leaders to the second Trump era as too muted, she said, “If the Democrats listened to Bernie, we wouldn’t be in this mess. I assume he feels a deep level of disgust.”
Sanders also appears to have a more immediate target in mind. According to a Sanders aide who was granted anonymity to speak about his strategy, he is looking to influence the budget fight roiling Congress by traveling to battleground districts as part of his upcoming tour.
Sanders is holding town halls later this month in Omaha, Nebraska and Iowa City, Iowa, which are represented by GOP Reps. Don Bacon and Mariannette Miller-Meeks, respectively. Former President Joe Biden won Bacon’s district in 2020, and Kamala Harris carried it in 2024.
The GOP now holds a narrow majority in the House, and Sanders is aiming to make it harder for Republicans like Bacon and Miller-Meeks to vote to cut taxes for the wealthy and trim public benefits.
Cohen said in a recent conversation with Sanders, the senator zeroed in on the 2026 midterms.
“I started talking about the ’28 election,” Cohen said. “He says, ‘We got ’26 to work on.’”
This is far from the first time that Sanders has traveled to politically critical states in order to win more publicity for his causes. He also stumped in Iowa in 2021 to build support for Biden’s legislative agenda.
Sanders is a keen observer — and critic — of the media, and he knows that the traditionally first-in-the-nation caucus state of Iowa is catnip for reporters, even after Democrats moved it back in their nominating calendar in 2024. Anything he does there is bound to get attention — something many Democrats are desperate for as Musk dominates the conversation on his social media site X alongside Trump.
“Sen. Sanders has been a prophet for where the Democratic Party needs to go in standing up for working-class Americans and opposing the unholy alliance of wealth and power,” said Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.). “We need him in strategic states making the case to define the future of our party for the next 20 years.”
Asked about the goal of Sanders’ tour, his spokesperson Anna Bahr said, “It may be hard to believe, but at least one person in Washington is more interested in talking with working-class people than running for office or fundraising. Sen. Sanders is doing what he has always done: meeting people all over the country to discuss our failed health care system, housing crisis, and the wealth and income inequality that is only intensifying as Donald Trump and Elon Musk march us toward authoritarianism, oligarchy, and kleptocracy.”
A former Sanders aide, who was granted anonymity to speak frankly, said the senator is “putting Dems on notice since they’re engaged in a kind of anti-politics politics” and “trying to pave the way for someone else and make these issues the issues” in 2028.
The person added that Sanders has “got to be so pissed” because there is a clear opening for a progressive to run and win in 2028. But “he’s too old to take it.”
A second former Sanders aide suggested there might be something more personal than a political calculation at play, too. The senator, the person said, simply loves soaking up the attention of the campaign trail.
“A core tenet of Bernieism is that he likes talking to crowds,” said the former aide. “He likes spreading his message, and likes being adored.”
