Elizabeth Warren Isn’t a “Unity Candidate”

Elizabeth Warren’s right-flank supporters have fled her camp. Today, her major role in this primary is to hold on to a base that would support Bernie Sanders, disproportionately hurting him and benefiting Biden and Bloomberg.

Democratic Presidential Candidates Debate In Las Vegas Ahead Of Nevada Caucuses

Democratic presidential candidates Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Sen. Bernie Sanders participate in the Democratic presidential primary debate on February 19, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Mario Tama / Getty Images)


The strategic case for Elizabeth Warren’s candidacy has typically relied on two similar arguments. The first is that she is a “unity candidate” who can bring the left and right flanks of the Democratic Party together. The second, addressed to the Left, is that she can expand a supposed Sanders-Warren coalition without simply eating into the Sanders base by bringing in right-flank voters.

Neither of these arguments were ever particularly credible, but both have become much weaker. Over the past several months, Warren’s right-flank supporters have fled her camp while a disproportionate core of second-choice Sanders supporters have remained. Increasingly, her role in this race is holding on to that base and — as one Warren campaign staffer said Saturday night — “blunting the momentum for Bernie Sanders.”

To get a sense of what is going on with Warren’s coalition, I divided it into two groups: those who support Bernie Sanders as a second choice, and those who do not. Here’s how her second-choice support has changed since July:

This article is for subscribers only. Please login or subscribe to access our full archives and beautiful print and digital magazine starting at just $3 a month.