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Bernie Sanders has endorsed Joe Biden for president. 

Credit: Chase Sutton , Sukhmani Kaur

Less than a week after Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) suspended his presidential campaign, he has endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden – further paving the way for the former Penn professor to face off against 1968 Wharton graduate Donald Trump in November.

Sanders made his announcement in a joint livestream with Biden this afternoon, telling him, "We need you in the White House. And I will do all that I can to make that happen."

Despite the Senator's endorsement, Penn for Bernie is not following the lead of their former presidential champion. 

Penn for Bernie's Twitter account was active on the social media platform while the news broke. In a now-deleted tweet, the account wrote that they do not agree with the decision: "However, whether one votes for Joe Biden is their own choice, and we will not judge either way."

The account also replied to Sanders' tweet announcing he was joining a livestream with Biden, writing, "This ain't it, dad."


Penn for Bernie's board members wrote in an emailed statement to The Daily Pennsylvanian that although they "revere" Sanders, they do not agree with his decision and "are not a cult who will follow him in each and every direction."

"Joe Biden has played a personal role in virtually every major policy disaster over the past four decades, all while tampering his trust among our generation by serving corporate America," the statement read.

The group said they are especially disappointed that Sanders endorsed Biden in light of a recent sexual assault allegation from a former staffer who worked in Biden's Senate office in 1993. 

"We believe that the progressive movement will hold greater leverage in enacting our economically populist policy convictions by showing the Democratic Party that we won’t passively come to heel," the statement continued. 

Penn for Bernie's Twitter account has also retweeted a post from the Sanders support group at West Virginia University, part of which read, "We don’t trust, and will never trust, Joe Biden." 

Before Sanders' endorsement, Penn for Bernie said the group would not support Biden, but transform into a general hub for progressives on campus. Penn for Bernie Co-director and College sophomore Jack Cahill said members were split on who to support in November, with some planning to vote for Biden, some for third-party candidates, and some abstaining entirely.

Senior Reporter Max Cohen and Staff Reporter Pia Singh contributed reporting.