CONCORD, N.H. — From his run for mayor of Burlington to numerous campaigns for Congress, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has for more than three decades eschewed traditional party labels in his pursuit of political office, winning election after election as an independent.
As he seeks the presidency as a Democrat, that unwillingness to be pigeonholed could be a liability in New Hampshire. To get on the ballot in the first-in-the-nation primary state, candidates must fill out paperwork that requires them to identify as a registered member of a political party.
Sanders’ campaign isn’t worried.
“We think it will work out,” Sanders’ spokesman Michael Briggs told The Associated Press. “The senator has said that he’ll do whatever it takes that he can do to qualify for the ballot.”
