Sanders gives blessing as Dems nominate Clinton

PHILADELPHIA — Bernie Sanders moved for Democrats to choose Hillary Clinton as the party’s presidential nominee on Tuesday night in a gesture meant to unite the party heading into the general election contest against Republican Donald Trump.

{mosads}Delegates spent nearly two hours Tuesday going through a formal roll call vote, allowing Sanders supporters to cast their votes for him one final time. 

The party arranged the state-by-state vote so that Vermont would go last, giving Sanders a dramatic stage to nominate Clinton one day after he delivered an impassioned plea at the Democratic National Convention here for his backers to get behind her.

Sanders sat smiling and beaming from his perch within the Vermont delegation as his state’s delegate chairwoman talked about how he had “changed the trajectory of this country.”

Anticipation in the arena built as Sanders took the microphone and moved to suspend procedural rules so a voice vote could be held.


“I move that Hillary Clinton be selected as the nominee of the Democratic Party for the presidency of the United States,” he said.



Convention Chairwoman Marcia Fudge said that Sanders had “moved in the spirit of unity” to hold an acclamation vote.



The “ayes” resonated throughout the Wells Fargo Center, drowning out a small contingent of “nays.”



The crowd erupted in cheers. Sanders hugged his wife, Jane Sanders. Delegates danced and held signs with Clinton’s campaign logo. 

Only a few delegates remained holding their “Bernie” signs as he climbed the stairs to leave the arena, making Clinton the first woman in history to be the standard-bearer for a major political party.

The spectacle capped a dramatic few days that left Democrats with serious concerns over whether they’d be able to unite the party heading into the fall.

There were fears leading up to convention that Sanders’s supporters would boo and jeer when Clinton’s name was mentioned, embarrassing the nominee on her big day.

There were still some disgruntled Sanders supporters within the arena even after the show of unity. 

The Vermont delegates packed their “Bernie 2016” signs into their bags and followed Sanders out.

One visibly angry Sanders supporter was heard shouting in the concourse, “I’m going to tell every Bernie [supporter] I can to vote against that b—-.” 

Other frustrated Sanders delegates walked into the media tent directly across from the arena to protest. They shouted that the election was rigged, and some vowed to abandon the Democratic Party to back Green Party candidate Jill Stein.

The police were called in to prevent more Sanders supporters from accessing the media area. They surrounded the protesters, who chanted, “This is what democracy looks like!” 

Despite the protests, several delegates said they were personally prepared to vote for Clinton but wanted to register their displeasure with the Democratic Party and particularly the DNC one last time.

There were even some Sanders delegates who ended up protesting the protesters.

One Kansas delegate accused the Sanders backers of being “agitators” and “tools of Donald Trump.” He engaged in a brief shouting match with another Sanders delegate about the group actions.

But Tuesday night’s nominating process was largely a resounding success for the party.

Cheers rang out repeatedly as delegates cast the bulk of their votes for Clinton.

Those delegates who announced their support for Sanders — including his brother, Larry Sanders, who tearfully recalled their late parents — did so without disparaging Clinton.

The end result was a series of unifying moments for a party looking to rebound after Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz announced she would resign after leaked emails showed the party apparently plotting against Sanders’s campaign.

Clinton will formally accept the party’s nomination Thursday, the final night of the convention, setting up a general election fight against Trump.

Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), the longest serving woman in the Senate, nominated Clinton before a packed house of delegates and party officials.

Mikulski touted the historic nature of Clinton’s nomination.

“It is with a full heart that I am here today as we nominate Hillary Clinton to be the first woman president,” she said.

“She wants to break barriers so you won’t have barriers. You can count on her. She’ll fight for your day-to-day needs and the long range needs of the country.”

Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), a civil rights icon, seconded the nomination.

“We have come too far, we’ve made too much progress and we are not going back,” Lewis said. “We are going forward.”

“Eight years ago our party, the Democratic Party nominated and elected the first person of color to serve in the White House,” he said. “Tonight, on this night, we will shatter that glass ceiling again.”

Clinton’s husband, former President Bill Clinton, will address the convention later Tuesday night.

Hillary Clinton’s nomination marked the end of Sanders’s spirited challenge, which went further than experts thought possible.

The Vermont senator raised tens of millions of dollars in grassroots donations, attracted young voters to his insurgent campaign and galvanized grassroots liberals on his way to winning 22 states.

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii), a Sanders supporter, put forth his name for nomination and encouraged liberals to take up his torch.

“My friends, because this is a movement fueled by love it can never be stopped or defeated,” she said. “Now on the behalf of millions inspired by aloha, determined to seek a future rooted in love, compassion and justice for all and dedicated to a government of the people by the people and for the people. I’m honored to nominate Bernie Sanders for president of the United States.”

Now, Clinton will seek to rally the nearly 13 million voters who cast their ballots for Sanders during the primary.

That looked like a tough prospect on Monday following Wasserman Schultz’s abrupt resignation.

But Tuesday night showed the party largely unified, setting the stage for Democrats to leave Philadelphia optimistic that the turbulence is behind them.

 Peter Schroeder, Elliot Smilowitz and Jordan Fabian contributed.

Updated at 8:20 p.m.