Andrew Yang's 2020 crowds feature a mix of Trump and Sanders supporters


Andrew Yang is rejecting the norm in every way possible.
The tech entrepreneur entered the 2020 race as a total longshot, largely attracting people to his rallies and speeches out of pure curiosity. But now he's the only non-politician to have made the third Democratic debate stage, and has somehow united fans of both Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and President Trump under one roof, The New York Times reports.
Ben Longchamp, a New Hampshire college student who's been following Yang since May, described the candidate's initial appeal perfectly to the Times: "He was a meme — his campaign was a joke." After all, Yang was promising a $1,000 monthly stipend for every American. And he still is — his supporters just don't find it absurd anymore. Instead, they've embraced him as a "smart, substantive and affable political outsider" who's focused on the everyday problem of making ends meet, the Times writes.
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.
And Yang's support isn't just coming from the Democratic party he's running under. At events in New Hampshire, some of Yang's backers said they were former Sanders supporters who saw Yang as "a newer, fresher champion of progressive causes," per the Times. Others were libertarians who liked Yang's plan to "give people money and then get out of the way," the Times continues. Still others were fans of Trump, even currently — though many had traded MAGA hats for MATH ones. That's "Make America Think Harder," by the way.
Read more about Yang's surprising rise 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
Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.
-
Nashville dining: Far more than barbecue and hot chicken
Feature A modern approach to fine-dining, a daily-changing menu, and more
-
Music Reviews: Coco Jones and Viagra Boys
Feature "Why Not More?" and "Viagr Aboys"
-
Visa wants to let AI make credit card purchases for you
The Explainer The program will allow you to set a budget and let AI learn from your shopping preferences
-
Supreme Court allows transgender troop ban
speed read The US Supreme Court will let the Trump administration begin executing its ban on transgender military service members
-
Hollywood confounded by Trump's film tariff idea
speed read President Trump proposed a '100% tariff' on movies 'produced in foreign lands'
-
Trump offers migrants $1,000 to 'self-deport'
speed read The Department of Homeland Security says undocumented immigrants can leave the US in a more 'dignified way'
-
Trump is not sure he must follow the Constitution
speed read When asked about due process for migrants in a TV interview, President Trump said he didn't know whether he had to uphold the Fifth Amendment
-
Trump judge bars deportations under 1798 law
speed read A Trump appointee has ruled that the president's use of a wartime act for deportations is illegal
-
Trump ousts Waltz as NSA, taps him for UN role
speed read President Donald Trump removed Mike Waltz as national security adviser and nominated him as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations
-
Trump blames Biden for tariffs-linked contraction
speed read The US economy shrank 0.3% in the first three months of 2025, the Commerce Department reported
-
Trump says he could bring back Ábrego García but won't
Speed Read At a rally to mark his 100th day in office, the president doubled down on his unpopular immigration and economic policies