Democrats are becoming Berniecrats

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is having a moment. Not long ago he was a political outlier and something of an elected gadfly — a self-proclaimed socialist in a Democratic Party that wasn’t comfortable with socialism. No more.

Sanders and his socialist ideas are increasingly the driving force in today’s Democratic Party, especially among younger Democrats.

Traditional, left-leaning Democrats are becoming increasingly irrelevant. They aren’t leaving the party — the party is leaving them, as Sanders’s followers rack up political wins across the country.

Sanders was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1991. He then won a Senate seat in 2007. Although he identifies as an independent, he caucuses with Democrats and holds Democratic committee positions.

Read the entire article in The Hill

(Photo credit: AP Photo/Ryan Murphy)