Vermont Senator and Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders will hold a “Future to Believe In” rally Friday at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville.
The event is free and open to the public. Admission is first come, first served, but RSVPs are strongly encouraged. It will be held at the school’s Vadabalene Center, a multi-purpose sports and recreation building located at 1 Circle Drive in Edwardsville.
Doors open at 8 a.m. with the program set to begin at 10 a.m.
“Sanders will discuss a wide range of issues, including getting big money out of politics, his plan to make public colleges and universities tuition-free, combating climate change and ensuring universal health care,” a release from the Sanders campaign said.
In addition to this, the National Nurses United’s “#BernieBus” will appear at a rally Thursday at the Thompson Center, 69 W. Washington, in Chicago to encourage early voting.
Sanders will not be in attendance at Thursday's rally, although activists and candidates endorsed by Reclaim Chicago will work to boost early voting numbers.
Speakers include Omar Aquino, a Democratic candidate for state Senate, and Theresa Mah, a Democratic candidate for the state House of Representatives, among others.
Local
After the rally, voters will walk to cast their ballots at the early voting site at 69 W. Washington.
Sanders has ramped up his campaign efforts in Illinois in the lead-up to the state’s March 15 presidential primary.
Last month, Sanders opened a Chicago office on Roosevelt Road in the South Loop. During that trip, he also held an Illinois campaign kick-off event at nearby Bar Louie.
Later in the month, Sanders hosted a well-attended rally at Chicago State University and appeared on an MSNBC program broadcasting live from his alma mater, the University of Chicago.
Sanders had a respectable showing during Super Tuesday early this week although he trails frontrunner Hillary Clinton. The senator won his home state of Vermont as well as Colorado, Minnesota and Oklahoma, garnering 321 new delegates and bringing his pledged total to 386.
Clinton won Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. In doing so, she won 486 delegates, bringing her pledged total to 577.
