Bernie Sanders just earned a very rare endorsement from The Nation

(Image credit: KENA BETANCUR/AFP/Getty Images)

published 14 January 2016

Since its founding in 1865, The Nation has only endorsed two political candidates for president: Jesse Jackson in 1988 and Barack Obama in 2008. A third name is now being added to that list: Bernie Sanders.

While the endorsement has been in the works since December, The Nation's announcement comes during a particularly good week for the Vermont senator. On Tuesday, a Monmouth University poll found Sanders significantly narrowing Hillary Clinton's lead in Iowa and New Hampshire.

From The Nation's editorial:

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Americans are fed up and fighting back. Seen in isolation, the Fight for $15, Black Lives Matter, the climate-justice movement, the immigrant-rights movement, the campaign for a financial-transactions tax, and the renewed push for single-payer healthcare may seem like unrelated causes. Taken together, they form a rising chorus of outrage over a government that caters to the demands of the super-wealthy, while failing to meet the needs of the many. They share a fury at a politics captured by special interests and big money, where pervasive corruption mocks the very notion of democracy.In Bernie Sanders, these movements for greater equality and justice have found an ally and a champion. [The Nation]

Earlier this week, Sanders also earned the endorsement of another major liberal player: MoveOn.org, a grassroots organization boasting 8 million members. "MoveOn members are feeling the Bern. We will mobilize aggressively to add our collective people power to the growing movement behind the Sanders campaign, starting with a focus on voter turnout in Iowa and New Hampshire," the organization wrote.

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.