April 30th, 2015. Bernie Sanders, an independent U.S. Senator from Vermont, declared his intent to run for the President of the United States in an address on the lawn of the U.S. Capitol. How many of us can honestly recall paying attention, if at all, to that moment? In the early days of the 2016 Presidential Campaign, it was basically a foregone conclusion that it was finally Hillary Clinton's turn, after a shocking defeat in the 2008 race to now President Barack Obama. November of 2016 was undoubtedly going to feature Hillary Clinton against a Republican who would ultimately emerge from a crowded candidate field.

Flash forward a bit more than nine months, and Bernie Sanders is heading into the Nevada primary fresh off a landslide win in New Hampshire and essentially a virtual tie with Clinton in Iowa. In New Hampshire, approximately 85 percent of voters aged 30 or under voted for Sanders, with a similar outcome in Iowa in which 84 percent of voters in the same age group cast their ballot for him. Bernie Sanders is always quoted calling for a political revolution, an overhaul of campaign finance laws, and harsher laws on Wall Street moneymakers, and his political stance his brought him up to the level of the mighty Hillary Clinton. What is driving voters, particularly younger ones, out in record numbers to support the once unknown Senator from Vermont?

Bernie Sanders is seen as the Democratic Socialist candidate who is actually willing to help the American people, which has spurred many memes regarding Sanders and his willingness to help others. The more popular ones, such as the one displayed below, contrast Sanders and Clinton by showing Sanders' eagerness to aid others, whereas Clinton merely tells others what to do.

He wants to provide free college education to America's students that are falling short compared to students of other nations that provide subsidized or even free higher education to their students in order to encourage learning. He also wants to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour so that Americans working 40 hours per week will not have to live in poverty, close the gender pay gap between males and females, provide universal affordable health care, and fight for racial justice. It is the combination of these proposals, in addition to countless others (which can be reviewed at https://berniesanders.com/issues), that gives Sanders the image of truly caring for the aid and progression of all Americans.

It's no surprise that Sanders's genuineness appeals to younger voters, who place a great emphasis on the motifs of trust, loyalty, and authenticity. For us millennials, we want to elect a President that deserves the position based on his or her beliefs and policies, in lieu of having billionaire donors in their back pocket. In the October 13th Democratic Debate in Las Vegas, Sanders received the most thundering applause of the night when he said the American people are "sick and tired of hearing about [Clinton's] damn emails," and urged the moderators to focus on the real issues plaguing America today. Many lauded this action because it shows Sanders would rather focus on his plans for improving our country instead of bashing his opponent. We, the American people, of all age classifications, are tired of hearing candidates go back and forth to tarnish each other's image on the debate stage rather than providing us with actual proposals.

In addition to his sincerity, Bernie Sanders also attracts voters because of his unwavering political stance, whereas his opponent Hillary Clinton is viewed as being duplicitous and wobbling on issues. Sanders's campaign focuses on a few but key points for change: reform of campaign finance laws, diminish the political influence of Wall Street moneymakers, free tuition for college students, and various means to bolster the middle class. Sanders has stuck with these fundamental ideas throughout the years, as demonstrated in a recently resurfaced video from June 2003 in which Sanders battled Alan Greenspan, the chair of the Federal Reserve, during a House Committee on Financial Services hearing. Sanders blasted Greenspan for focusing on the wealthy and large corporations and called for more of an emphasis on the middle class.

On the flip side, although Clinton tries to match Sanders's firm stance on Wall Street and assures Americans that she is not influenced by them, voters can't help but view this as deceitful. She is known for accepting large amounts of money in exchange for giving speeches, most notably $816k and $760k for Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, respectively. As millennials, we find it difficult to believe that those big Wall Street firms have no influence on Clinton's campaign, when they are the largest donors to her campaign. It also didn't help that Clinton's response to CNN moderator Anderson Cooper's question about why she accepted so much money from Goldman Sachs was because "that's what they offered." Her perpetual involvement with Wall Street despite her saying otherwise also led to the creation of the video shown below, which is a satiric twist on Facebook's recent "Friends Day" feature that showcases a user's best friends in a video.

Sanders is one of only two candidates to not rely on Super-PACs as a source of campaign funding (Donald Trump being the only other one), but instead relies on millions in individual contributions. This further boosts Sanders' popularity since his campaign is actually running on the support of the American people rather than special interest groups. He has the American people's best interests at heart rather than those of lobbyists and large corporations.

Furthermore, unlike Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders actually treats us millennials with the respect and maturity that we deserve. Back in August of last year, Clinton tweeted out to her younger generation followers to reply to her by describing how student loan debt makes them feel in "3 emojis or less."

How does your student loan debt make you feel?
Tell us in 3 emojis or less.
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) https://twitter.com/HillaryClinton/status/63153811... 12, 2015

While emojis are an entertaining way to converse with someone and are often used by younger people as opposed to older ones, Clinton talking to the younger generation like this seems childish, as if she doesn't think they are capable of replying with complete sentences to fully express their thoughts. Just because the millennial generation is growing up in the midst of a technological revolution does not mean our entire lives revolve around technology; we are more than competent at participating in intellectual discussions just as people from any other age group. Conversely, Bernie Sanders treats the same younger generation just as he does any other age group--as equals. He understands that millennials are the future of America and should be treated with the level of maturity they need in order to run the country, rather than being babysat.

Despite his departures from Hillary Clinton and all the Republican candidates, and his surprising finishes in the first two primaries, Bernie Sanders is still not believed to pose a credible threat the rest of the campaign. Now that the primaries shift away from friendly territory in Iowa and New Hampshire, many believe his unexpected victories will end, as Clinton's political backing is simply too strong a force to be reckoned with for much longer.

Ultimately, presidential campaigns last for as long as it is financially viable to continue running, which is why, as of now, Sanders continues his campaign. Perhaps Clinton will ultimately end up the Democratic Presidential nominee as many initially expected, but don't count out Bernie Sanders and his political revolution just yet, especially after his campaign raked in a record-breaking $6.5 million in the twenty-four hours after the close of polls in New Hampshire. His overwhelming support from the younger population was crucial in the first two primaries, which is why he is urging us millennials to go out and vote for him and stand up with him. Any contribution to his campaign lets him stand up to the establishment for as long as possible, so as millennials, let's collectively support the only candidate in this election who will truly stand up for us.