Sen. Bernie Sanders, an avowed democratic socialist, is steadily making good on his long-running mission to pull the Democratic Party to the far left. He has blessed a slate of far-left candidates who have racked up primary wins by channeling a Sanders-style populist message aimed at voters who feel the wealthy and politically powerful have rigged the system against them.

Sanders’ Influence

Mr. Sanders’ influence isn’t confined to New England. He also notched a win in California’s 22nd Congressional District, where Randy Villegas, a school board trustee and auto shop owner, outperformed Assemblywoman Jasmeet Bains to finish second in the top-two primary.

Other Sanders-backed primary winners include Analilia Mejía in New Jersey’s 11th District; Bob Brooks, a firefighters’ union chief, in Pennsylvania’s competitive 7th District; and Brian Poindexter, a union ironworker and city councilman, in Ohio’s 7th District.

Reaction from Republicans and Centrist Groups

Republicans are happy to have Mr. Sanders elevating candidates such as Mr. Platner and Abdul El-Sayed, who is running in a tight three-way Democratic primary for an open Senate seat in Michigan. Centrist groups, meanwhile, are sounding the alarm, warning that the Sanders model has its limits.

Kate deGruyter, senior director of communications for Third Way, warned that the Sanders model has its limits. “The urgent mission for Democrats right now is not turning blue seats bluer, but turning red seats blue, and on that score, it’s the moderate wing of the party that has a very significant track record of success,” she said.

Original reporting: WMAL (Washington DC) — read the source article.