PORTLAND, Maine — About 50 people gathered for a rally on the Maine State Pier here on Sunday afternoon in support of Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.
Bernie Sanders grassroots volunteers and others organized the event. Gar Roper, one of those organizers, says Hillary Clinton is "not a representative of the everyday people."
"I think there's a huge majority if we can get them to realize that Bernie is talking about them," Roper says.
Andy Pratt, a registered nurse from Machias and a board member for the Maine State Nurses Association, says Sanders is the candidate that best supports nurses and public health.
"For example, calling for mandatory federal nurse-to-patient ratios," Pratt says. "Currently, there are no mandatory limits on how many patients can be assigned to a nurse in almost all U.S. hospitals, despite studies that show a direct link between safe practice and patient ratios."
Pratt says Sanders is co-sponsoring legislation mandating staffing ratios for U.S. hospitals.
"I'm really struck by the fact that what Bernie Sanders is doing is not trying to build a candidacy, but a social movement to deal with issues of inequality," says University of Southern Maine economics professor Michael Hillard, a speaker at the event.
Sanders addressed the crowd via a prerecorded message.