Bernie Sanders' comment on white voters and black candidates got his recall on Twitter

Although the Democratic Party took over parliament in Tuesday's mid-term elections, many Democrats were disappointed by the major losses across the country. On Wednesday, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders suggested that the race could explain the losses of Florida Democrat Andrew Gillum and possibly Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams, although she did not concede. However, Sanders' comments about white voters and black candidates later triggered violent reactions.

"I think you know that there are a lot of whites who are not necessarily racist and who felt uncomfortable for the first time in their lives to know who they wanted or where they were. not vote for an African-American, "Sanders told the Daily Beast on Wednesday. "I think next time, by the way, it will be a lot easier for them to do it."

Many Twitter users have been quick to criticize Sanders for suggesting that such voters are "not necessarily racist", arguing that White voters' refusal to vote for black candidates is, in fact, what it is. racism. Thursday, Josh Miller-Lewis, director of communications for Sanders, redirected Bustle to a more detailed statement the Vermont Senator had published to clarify his comments. In that statement, Sanders claimed that the "fear of the other" had led to "frantic attacks" against Gillum and Abrams, which ultimately had an impact on the election results.

Miller-Lewis also noted that the Daily Beast had left aside an important context by citing Sanders' remarks. Miller-Lewis then redirected Bustle to a audio extract of the interview, in which the senator preceded his comments by urging the interviewer to describe the Trump administration's campaigns against Gillums and Abrams as "racist" and not "race-oriented".

In the interview, Sanders told The Daily Beast that Gillum was a "fantastic politician" who "produced a tremendous amount of energy" – and that he "had to tackle racism on more blatant and uglier than we have seen in many cases, many years, yet he is about to win. " He also praised Gillum 's campaign efforts to pass Florida' s Amendment 4, which will restore the voting rights of about 1.4 million people previously convicted of crimes.

On Thursday, in a statement issued by Sanders to clarify his remarks to the Daily Beast, the Vermont senator said that "Donald Trump, Brian Kemp and Ron DeSantis were running racist campaigns." He seemed to suggest that white voters may feel uncomfortable voting for black candidates because of racist messages.

Later on Thursday, while the reaction on Twitter was continuing, Sanders also clarified his remarks during an interview with NPR, in which he had stated that he was thinking more specifically about the racist campaigns against Gillum and Abrams – and not their inability to attract white voters. "Support, or the fact that neither Florida nor Georgia had elected a black governor before.

"There is no doubt that in Georgia and Florida, racism has appeared," Sanders told NPR. "And you have candidates who ran against Gillum and Stacey Abrams who were racist and were doing everything they could to try to play whites against blacks." And it's a scandal, and we have to continue to do everything we can to fight all forms of racism. "

Although Sanders denounced the racism that Gillum and Abrams faced during their respective campaigns, Twitter users still are not convinced that Sanders understands why his comments have caused outrage. Sanders said he thought the opponents of Gillum and Abrams had carried out racist campaigns – but he did not comment further on his remark that white voters are "not necessarily racist". It's this remark that continues to elicit negative reactions on social media, and several social media users have criticized Sanders for Too much work to appeal to white voters.