Download NHPR’s new State of Democracy app and stay connected to the stories that matter from the 2016 campaign trail.
Advertisement
Sanders is technically not a Democrat in the US Senate, though he caucuses with the party.
He delivered a 20-minute speech on the front lawn, telling supporters, “I am pretty proud of the fact that I am the only Democratic candidate for president who does not have a Super PAC”.
“That’s it”, Gardner said after Sanders signed the official paperwork.
Sanders and his supporters have mostly brushed aside questions about any potential threats to his place on the New Hampshire ballot, which requires candidates to declare that they are a “registered member” of either the Republican or Democratic party.
There had been controversy of another sort prior to Sanders’s filing Thursday, with a few questioning whether the longest-serving independent in Congress would be eligible to run as a Democrat in the nation’s first primary state. If any New Hampshire resident challenges the filing, a non-partisan state Ballot Law Commission will make a ruling that could be appealed in federal court. Sanders wrote in the word “Democratic”, campaign spokesman Karthik Ganapathy said. He desperately needs to be in the New Hampshire primary to legitimize his quest for the presidential nomination. “That Democratic debate was so enjoyable because they’re each going their own path. It was the damn emails”.
Sanders’ more aggressive tone may represent fresh concerns that his once double-digit lead in New Hampshire – and the prospect of a major political upset over Clinton nationally – is fading.
Raymond Buckley, chairman of the New Hampshire Democratic Party, accompanied Sanders to the statehouse in a show of support for his eligibility, which is also backed by the Democratic National Committee.
With so much riding on his getting on the New Hampshire ballot, it’s unlikely Gardner will unilaterally act to keep Sanders off the ballot.
Advertisement
Despite the lingering uncertainty from the Secretary of State’s office, Buckley was as confident as ever when asked earlier this week about the filing process that awaits Sanders. “When you look at Bernie Sanders against somebody like Donald Trump or against other Republican candidates, more often than not, not always, but more often than not, I do better than Secretary Clinton does”, he said. Buckley would not say whether the Sanders campaign requested his presence.
