Staffers on Bernie Sanders' 2016 campaign say their harassment claims were ignored


Several women who worked on the 2016 presidential campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) told The New York Times they faced sexual harassment and were not paid the same as their male counterparts.
Samantha Davis, who worked as the director of operations in Texas and New York, told the Times that after she rebuffed her supervisor's invitation to his hotel room, she was marginalized. "There was no one who would or could help," she said. Giulianna Di Lauro, a Latino outreach strategist, said she told a manager that while driving a surrogate around in Nevada, he ran his hand through her hair "in a sexual way" and continued to "push my boundaries" over the course of the day. The manager responded, "I bet you would have liked it if he were younger," then laughed.
The Times spoke with a dozen former staffers and delegates over the last month, and none knew if Sanders was aware of the complaints. Several said it upset them that a progressive candidate's campaign would have problems with sexual harassment and pay disparity, and it makes them wary of supporting Sanders should he run in 2020. Jeff Weaver, Sanders' 2016 campaign manager and a top adviser, told the Times that "anybody who committed harassment on the campaign would not be asked back. ... In 2016, as the size of our campaign exploded, we made efforts to make it a positive experience for people. That there was a failure pains me very much."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Regarding pay, Davis said she earned about $2,400 a month as a senior staff member, and when she discovered that a younger man who was originally supposed to report to her made $5,000 a month, she told the campaign's chief operating officer and her salary was adjusted. "I helped at least a dozen women request raises so that they would be held on par with their male peers," Davis told the Times. Read more about the accusations at The New York Times.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
One-pan black chickpeas with baharat and orange recipe
The Week Recommends This one-pan dish offers bold flavours, low effort and minimum clean up
By The Week UK
-
Merz's coalition deal: a 'betrayal' of Germany?
Talking Point With liberalism, freedom and democracy under threat globally, it's a time for 'giants' – but this is a 'coalition of the timid'
By The Week UK
-
Sudoku hard: April 19, 2025
The Week's daily hard sudoku puzzle
By The Week Staff
-
The anger fueling the Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez barnstorming tour
Talking Points The duo is drawing big anti-Trump crowds in red states
By Joel Mathis, The Week US
-
Judge threatens Trump team with criminal contempt
Speed Read James Boasberg attempts to hold the White House accountable for disregarding court orders over El Salvador deportation flights
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Biden slams Trump's Social Security cuts
Speed Read In his first major public address since leaving office, Biden criticized the Trump administration's 'damage' and 'destruction'
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
El Salvador refuses to return US deportee
Speed Read President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador said he would not send back the unlawfully deported Kilmar Ábrego García
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Trump says electronics tariff break won't last
Speed Read The tariff exemptions on smartphones, laptops and other electronic devices are temporary, the administration says
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Man charged in arson attack on Pennsylvania's Shapiro
Speed Read Governor Josh Shapiro and his family were sleeping when someone set fire to his Harrisburg mansion
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
White House pushes for oversight of Columbia University
Speed Read The Trump administration is considering placing the school under a consent decree
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Supreme Court backs wrongly deported migrant
Speed Read The Trump administration must 'facilitate' the return of wrongfully deported migrant Kilmar Ábrego García from El Salvador, Supreme Court says
By Peter Weber, The Week US