I have reservations about Sanders. I fear he'd get clobbered in a national electorate about being a socialist.
If anyone doesn't know Sanders is a socialist at this point then they're mentally impaired. The fact that he's leading with COLLEGE-EDUCATED WHITE SUBURBANITES [insert meme here] and people making over $100K despite that is hilarious and also atrocious for Trump. This is a poll that has him at 44% approval mind you, which is higher than any other poll
Oh I’m sure almost everyone knows he’s a socialist, what I’m saying is that the prospect of electing a socialist to the presidency has not been tested on a national electorate. I’m sure millennials wouldn’t be swayed by it, but the the socialist aspect would be seriously attacked by Trump and the right and probably enough to sway other voting groups.
Also, a socialist candidate like Bernie would galvanize Trump’s cult to get out the vote just as strongly as they did in 2016. Kiss Arizona, North Carolina, and Georgia goodbye. Bernie would have zero chance in those states. I’m not so sure he’d fair well in Florida, Ohio, or Iowa. He might lose Nevada. Virginia would be closer. I think Minnesota and Colorado would be safe for him. Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin may lean his way but they may not just as easily; I see them being pure tossups in a Trump-Sanders race. The northeast would probably be safe for Bernie though.
Regardless of what these polls show, I think Bernie would lose. I also think it likely he would lose worse than Hillary, probably even losing the popular vote.
