Symone Sanders, who gained prominence after working for Bernie Sanders’s 2016 presidential campaign, is expected to join former Vice President Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign as a senior adviser.
Sanders, 29, has served as a political analyst on CNN since working as a spokeswoman for the Vermont senator’s 2016 campaign. The strategist has been wooed by multiple 2020 candidates and met with Biden a few weeks ago before being offered the position, The Associated Press reports.
The strategist shared the report of her hire on Twitter, calling Biden and his wife Dr. Jill Biden “a class act,” adding, “Over the course of this campaign, Vice President Biden is going to make his case to the American [people].”
{mosads}The outlet noted that the hire will add youth and diversity to Biden’s inner circle amid concerns that the former vice president, who launched his campaign Thursday morning, cannot properly appeal to younger and nonwhite voters.
Sanders herself has been vocal about the need for such voices within the Democratic Party, telling CNN shortly after the 2016 presidential election that “the Democratic Party is diverse, and it should be reflected as so in our leadership and throughout the staff at the highest levels from the vice chairs to the secretaries all the way down to the people working in the offices at the [Democratic National Committee].”
The hiring also suggests a play for younger voters who might otherwise be courted by Sanders’s campaign. The Vermont senator and Biden have consistently been the top two Democratic contenders in primary polling.
CNN confirmed shortly after the announcement that Symone Sanders would no longer be a network contributor.
The Biden campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Hill.
Updated 12:22 p.m.