Sunrise Movement and our allies campaigned aggressively from the start of the Democratic primary to force climate into the conversation. While we endorsed Senator Bernie Sanders in the crowded primary, other candidates, including Biden, heeded our call, releasing more and more aggressive climate plans. 23 of 25 candidates endorsed a Green New Deal, and after on the ground pressure from Sunrise on holding a climate debate, CNN subsequently held a climate town hall in June 2020, with every major Democratic candidate in attendance.
Sunrise helped ensure that climate would be a winning issue for Biden by deploying money, volunteers, and resources to have a major impact on youth turnout – including contacting more than 4 million potential voters on Biden’s behalf across eight swing states ahead of the general election. Sunrise not only powered Biden to victory, but also helped elect a slate of climate champions, including Jamaal Bowman, Cori Bush, and Ed Markey. In 2020 we contacted over 6.5 million voters in the primaries and general election creating the largest youth turnout in history. We gave Joe Biden a Climate Mandate.
