By Hannah Gonzalez
Many fans of Senator Bernie Sanders favor Fordham Law professor Zephyr Teachout, who is running for Congress. (@ZephyrTeachout/Twitter).
With progressive policies akin to those of Senator Bernie Sanders, Fordham Law professor Zephyr Teachout is running for a seat in the 115th Congress. She hopes to draw support from Sanders and his New York-based supporters as the November elections approach.
Teachout announced her bid for Congress in January 2016, and Sanders raised money for her candidacy during his presidential campaign. In November, Teachout will face off against republican John Faso for a seat in the House’s 19th district. Republicans currently dominate both the House and the Senate, so democratic hopefuls such as Teachout aim to tip the scales in favor of more liberal policies. She won 71.3 percent of the vote in the June primary elections.
In 2015, Teachout wrote a Huffington Post article endorsing Sanders for president. She has been an outspoken critic of corporate influence in politics. She supports small and mid-size businesses and the enforcement of antitrust laws.
Teachout has subsisted on small donations and accused the campaign finance system of corruption.
“Her political support for campaign finance reform, protecting social security and empowering workers against corporations stand in stark contrast to the encroaching corporatization of higher education of which Fordham is largely complicit,” said Evan Cramb, FCRH ’18. “I am confident that Teachout stands for the interests of average New Yorkers and not the Wall Street crooks, hiding in their glossy skyscrapers downtown.”
According to a report by the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) at Tufts University, of voters under 30-years-old, Sanders won over two million votes, compared to Hillary Clinton’s 766,425 and Donald Trump’s 828,675.
“I think almost all millennials are very for far left concepts, so I think [Teachout] probably has a high chance of winning if the voter turnout is high,” said Kaylee Kurkierewicz, FCRH ’20.
Teachout is running in the Hudson Valley and Catskills region, a swing district previously represented by republican Chris Gibson.
Fifty-eight percent of Fordham Democrats and 29 percent of the Fordham student body overall supported Bernie Sanders in March of this year, according to a joint poll conducted by United Student Government (USG), Fordham Political Review, Fordham University College Republicans and College Democrats. It follows that Teachout’s similar views would be popular amongst students–provided they follow politics.
“I’ve never heard of her, but I like Bernie Sanders,” said Gabriela Christensen, FCRH ’20. “If her policies are like Bernie’s, then I like her too.”
Teachout’s campaign trail continues with meet-and-greets and canvassing around the 19th district.
