Friends -

What last night’s victories in Georgia proved is that when people have something to vote for rather than just vote against, when we prioritize organizing and mobilizing, our progressive agenda can win anywhere.

Together, our political revolution played an important role in both wins. We endorsed both Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, and our supporters made tens of thousands of calls and text messages to mobilize progressives in Georgia. We also raised more than $500,000 in small-dollar donations for both candidates.

Organizations like the New Georgia Project and Fair Fight Action have been organizing and registering new voters for years. Mijente contacted every Latino voter in the state in just eight weeks. It’s clear that when we organize, when we knock doors and invest in working class communities, we win.

But, it is critically important to remind everyone that over the final days of the campaign, Jon Ossoff, Raphael Warnock and Joe Biden made it clear: elect Democrats to these seats and we are going to pass legislation providing $2,000 for every working class American to help them during this pandemic.

They gave people something to vote for.

And they won.

Now, it wasn’t long ago that we were told to be quiet and settle for less.

We were told to accept $600 per person, and that we were lucky to even get that.

But we said no. And while delaying the vote in the Senate didn’t make me a lot of new friends, it was the right and important thing to do.

Because during that time you made your voices heard and made $2,000 per person a national issue. And by the time Georgians voted, our legislation was supported by the vast majority of Democrats, Republicans and Independents in the state and was a deciding factor in many of their votes.

That is how we win.

We were not distracted by Trump, Perdue and Loeffler’s antics. We kept the focus on a progressive agenda. Not just $2,000 per person, but raising the minimum wage was also an important issue in the final days of the campaign.

And we cannot go back to the old ways.

Because voting for our progressive agenda, which the American people support, is not risky. What is risky would be to go back to the old way of thinking small.

With the presidency and majorities in the House and Senate, NOW IS THE TIME for us to come together, to help families get through this pandemic, to revitalize American democracy, to end the collapse of the American middle class, and to make certain that our children and grandchildren are able to enjoy a quality of life that brings them health, prosperity, security, and joy.

And if we do that, not only will we win in 2022, but we will transform our country.

In solidarity,

Bernie Sanders