Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.) leads Hillary Clinton significantly in endorsements for the Democratic nomination on a new platform designed to engage voters in the 2016 presidential election.
Change Politics, a project of Change.org, allows Americans to post and expand on their endorsements of Democratic and Republican presidential candidates. As of Tuesday, Sanders had received 15,637 endorsements on the website, well over six times Clinton’s 2,388 endorsements.
The data serves as more evidence of Sanders’ grassroots appeal, which has allowed the self-described socialist to defeat Clinton in a slew of primary contests and outraise her campaign for three straight months.
While Clinton maintains a delegate lead and is still widely believed to be the likely Democratic nominee, Sanders has amassed considerable support from voters nationwide and presented an unexpected challenge to the former secretary of state. An NBC/Wall Street Journal poll released on Monday found that Clinton’s national lead over Sanders has eroded to two points.
Change Politics, which launched in January, solicits endorsements from all Americans and also prominently features those from "verified endorsers," including politicians, celebrities, and other influencers. While Clinton appears to lead Sanders in endorsements from verified users--Sen. Barbara Boxer (D., Calif.), "Scandal" actor Tony Goldwyn, and others--the Vermont senator has accumulated over 13,000 more fans than Clinton on the platform, many of whom cheered him for his honesty and authenticity.
Clinton’s trustworthiness has become a problem for her campaign as she continues to weather scrutiny for her use of personal email at the State Department, which critics argue put national security at risk. Polls have shown that Americans are increasingly unlikely to label Clinton honest.
Individuals endorsing Sanders on the platform did not always speak favorably of Clinton, which could pose a problem for Clinton as she seeks to win over Sanders supporters in the event of her nomination.
"Hillary is bought already, with the DNC blatantly biased towards her," one Sanders backer wrote. "But she will be just as ineffective (if not more [ineffective]) as Obama. Bernie will have more respect than Obama and Hillary once he takes office, because he’s respectful towards others, authentic, and assertive."
"He has integrity, whereas Clinton is now clearly assuming his positions because she sees how popular they are," another endorser wrote. "I am growing genuinely angry toward Clinton for stealing from Bernie and contradicting her earlier positions."
Another Sanders supporter alleged that Clinton changes her positions "whenever it is politically convenient," adding that she will, like Obama, make promises that she does not have the intention of keeping.
"I am 74 years old and I feel the Bern," another Sanders supporter wrote. "If he is not the Democratic nominee I will write him in as my choice when the time comes."
One-quarter of Sanders supporters say they will not back Clinton in a general election contest if she wins the nomination, according to a McClatchy-Marist poll released earlier this month.
Both campaigns have clashed intensely in recent weeks, with Sanders ramping up attacks on Clinton for her ties to wealthy donors and Wall Street institutions. The candidates sparred during a Democratic debate in Brooklyn last Thursday ahead of the primary contest in the Empire State, which Clinton calls home.
Polls show that Clinton has roughly a 12-point edge over Sanders among likely primary voters in New York, though her support has waned as Sanders has gained momentum.
Sanders has pledged to remain in the race until the Democratic convention in July.