PORTLAND, Maine (WGME) — U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders held a rally at the Cross Insurance Arena, joined by Maine gubernatorial candidate Troy Jackson and U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner.
The event, themed “fighting the oligarchy,” focused on the current state of the government and workers’ rights.
“Working families are struggling,” Sanders said, highlighting the challenges many Americans face and ongoing federal cuts.
Jackson, who previously served as the state Senate president and has a background in logging, emphasized his campaign’s focus on supporting working families, aiding seniors and creating a better future for children in Maine. Both he and Platner are Democrats.
Brad Sherwood, an attendee, said, “We all have things in common, we all have the same struggles, and they want solutions and they don’t want the establishment to tell them how to live and how we are going to survive.”
Platner, who is running for Republican Sen. Susan Collins’ seat, also joined Sanders, who recently endorsed him.
“In a nation in which we have a handful of billionaires controlling our economy, our media, our government, we are living in an oligarchy and that is the struggle we have got to take on,” Sanders said.
The rally, held on Labor Day, drew hundreds of attendees.
Frederick from Bath noted the significance of the event’s timing, saying, “The conversation with Bernie and Troy is perfect because these men have lived the life having been in the labor market themselves and representing those interests, not the interest of the investors or the stockbrokers.”
The rally is part of Sanders’ ongoing “fight the oligarchy” tour.
