Major Latinx Organization Mijente Makes First Presidential Endorsement with Bernie
Photo by Win McNamee/GettyComing to crush the myth of the “Bernie Bro,” a prominent Latinx grass-roots organization named Mijente endorsed Bernie Sanders this week. This is the group’s first presidential endorsement since its founding. Mijente acts to mobilize Latinx voters, so this could be a major boon for current frontrunner Sanders.
Mijente will utilize their 300,000+-person email list to assist Sanders with the Nevada caucuses on Feb. 22. Nevada has the fifth-highest Latinx population in the United States, meaning this endorsement could seal the deal for Sanders. Just ahead of the Nevada caucuses is the Nevada democratic debate, airing Wednesday, Feb. 19. Just today (Feb. 18), we received confirmation that six candidates qualified for the debate, including former NYC mayor Michael Bloomberg, thanks to suspiciously convenient changes in the rules. They will continue to support Sanders, particularly on Super Tuesday, on which, through volunteer efforts, Mijente will canvass and seek phone bank commitments.
Mijente’s president and founder Marisa Franco said their endorsement decision came after much deliberation and sit-downs with several of the potential candidates. When the list was whittled down to Sanders and Warren, 70% swayed to the Vermont senator’s side.
“Something that’s very appealing to people is his consistency and the concept of palabra,” Franco told Politico, “And what that means in our community is giving people your ‘word.’”
Mijente’s track record is not one to scoff at. In 2016, the group assisted with the ousting of former corrupt Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio, and in 2018 assisted with a near-doubling of Latinx voter turnout in Georgia’s governor race compared to 2014.