Throughout his campaign, US Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders has gained a notable following from the younger demographic, often attributed to policies centered around economic equity such as eliminating debt, free college for all and job security.

To better understand why young people “Feel the Bern,” Inkwell surveyed Upper School students. An interesting trend was that girls expressed an overwhelming amount of support for Sanders, while boys voiced the most opposition. 

The students who indicated their support for Sanders most often noted that he connects with all Americans. “He really cares about the wellbeing of the people,” freshman Laney Sneva wrote. The most common reason provided for supporting Sanders was agreeing with notable policies such as healthcare and college for all. These policies also proved to be the biggest divide in support, as there were also the most common reasons for why some students believe he would not make a good President. 

“Though I disagree with Bernie over several of his proposed solutions to the current problems facing America, I think his diagnosis of what needs fixing is largely correct,” said junior Nelson Athow. “His historical support for the same issues also makes it much easier to trust that he truly supports his message of positive change.” Opinions like Athow’s were expressed in great numbers throughout the survey: many indicated that while everyone may not agree with Sanders’s methods, the fact that he has stood behind the same issues for many years gives him appeal.

Several of those who were unsupportive of Sanders’s campaign explained they felt his self-described “democratic socialist” philosophy is dangerous to society and the US government system as a whole.

“I find him to be a disgusting human being with nothing remarkable to say,” said sophomore Samantha Salamone. “His campaign strategy is to trash Trump and make promises he can’t keep, such as free health care and free college. Nothing is free, nothing can ever be free… There is not the money in the entire nation to support [his proposals].”

Other students shared similar, if less visceral, concerns, questioning how the candidate expects to pay for all his big plans and expressing concern for the country if the President took a socialist approach.

The majority of student responses fell somewhere in the middle, with many expressing concerns that while Sanders’s proposals could bring positive change, the candidate is “too far left” to beat Trump in the upcoming election.