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The crowds for the Bernie Sanders Fighting Oligarchy tour are getting bigger, not smaller. The crowds in California, Idaho, Montana, and Utah were not all Democrats and progressives. Sen. Sanders’s office says that 21% of those attending these rallies are Independents, and 8% are Republicans.
Here is the breakdown of the crowds at each stop from Sen. Sanders:
All told, 146,950 people came out for the week’s events, including 35,000 during his surprise appearance at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, where he introduced the artist Clairo, and 36,000 in Los Angeles, California — the biggest crowd Sanders has ever attracted. Livestreams of this week’s events have been watched nearly 2 million times across social media platforms.
The Fighting Oligarchy tour kicked off six weeks ago. In total, 254,931 people have come out to seventeen stops across eleven states. Prior to this week’s swing, Sanders held rallies in Omaha, Iowa City, Kenosha, Altoona, Warren, Las Vegas, Tempe, Greeley, Denver, and Tucson. More than 6 million people tuned into those livestreams.
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Here is a look at turnout for each event:
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Los Angeles, California — 36,000
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This was the largest audience Bernie Sanders has ever attracted. In 2016, when he was running for president, his biggest crowd was 28,356 at Prospect Park, Brooklyn. In 2019, during his second presidential run, his largest crowd was 25,972 in Queensbridge Park, NY.
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Coachella Valley, California — 35,000
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Salt Lake City, Utah — 20,000
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Donald Trump won deep-red Utah by more than 20 points. Bernie and AOC attracted overflow crowds. The venue hit capacity early, and more than 4,000 people had to watch the event from screens outside.
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Nampa, Idaho — 12,500
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Trump has never visited the Gem State, though he swept it in the 2024 presidential election, winning Nampa’s county with 71 percent of the vote. 12,500 people came out for the Fighting Oligarchy rally, making it the largest political event in Idaho since Barack Obama ran for president in 2008.
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Bakersfield California — 4,450
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On a Tuesday afternoon, 4,450 people turned out to hear Bernie and AOC. Bakersfield is a Republican stronghold in California, home to former GOP House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. The flippable district was won by Rep. David Valadao with just 53% of the vote in 2024.
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Folsom, California — 30,000
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20,000 people RSVP’d for the rally in this Republican-held district. 30,000 showed up. The line to get into the rally stretched three miles long. The event was the third-largest in Sanders’ political career, following Los Angeles the previous week and Denver, Colorado earlier this month.
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Missoula, Montana — 9,000
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6,000 people RSVP’d for the rally in Montana, a state that Donald Trump won with 58.4 percent of the vote. 9,000 showed up, including 1,500 who waited outside after the venue reached capacity.
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Sen. Sanders is intentionally targeting House districts that are purple or were narrowly won by Republicans in 2024.
Sanders said, “This week, the American people turned out in enormous numbers. And their message was clear. They do not want oligarchy. They do not want authoritarianism. They are tired of massive income and wealth inequality and the greed of the billionaire class. They are tired of a corrupt political system that allows billionaires to buy elections. And, most importantly, they are prepared to fight back.”
The American people are fighting back, and they are delivering a resounding no to Trump and his party.
Democracy is very much alive, and the American people are standing up.
What do you think of the record Fighting Oligarchy crowds? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
