Rise of the Nones in New Hampshire: Bernie First-Ever Non-Christian Primary Winner | Sojourners

Rise of the Nones in New Hampshire: Bernie First-Ever Non-Christian Primary Winner

Image via CJ Hanevy / Shutterstock.com

New Hampshire is #FeelingTheBern.

Bernie Sanders’ primary victory in the Granite State Feb. 9 made him the first-ever non-Christian to win a presidential primary in U.S. history.

In addition, depending on whether you count Barry Goldwater as Jewish (his ancestors were Jewish but he identified as Episcopalian), Bernie Sanders could be considered the first Jewish primary winner in history as well.

While Sanders is culturally Jewish, he openly acknowledges that he does not participate in organized religion. His lack of religious affiliation may help explain some of his appeal to millennials, whose declining participation in churches and other religious institutions has led to the coining of a new term to describe them: “nones,” or those who mark “none” on surveys inquiring about religious affiliation.

Sanders nevertheless disappointed some atheists on Feb. 3 at a New Hampshire town hall, when he said that his faith is “a guiding principle” in his life.

“Everybody practices religion in a different way,” Sanders said.

“To me, I would not be here tonight, I would not be running for president of the United States, if I did not have very strong religious and spiritual feelings.”

For all the discussion of Sanders’ religious non-affiliation, there is very little about his Judaism, especially compared to what Ami Eden at Jewish Telegraphic Agency called the “months-long national bar mitzvah bash” when Al Gore selected Joe Lieberman as his running mate.

Eden writes:

The lack of Jewmania this time around is partially attributable to Donald Trump’s hogging the media spotlight. But, more importantly, since Lieberman’s dance on the national stage, an African American was elected president, a Mormon won the Republican nomination and a woman is widely viewed as the favorite to win in 2016. Suddenly the whole first-Jewish-president thing seems like a yawner.

There is also the fact that Lieberman wore his Judaism like a yarmulke. He proudly put his faith front and center while embracing the role of religious trailblazer and Jewish role model.

Sanders, not so much.

Besides the string of firsts that Eden names, even this primary season itself reflects the growing diversity of the United States. As Glenn Greenwald pointed out in a tweet, Ted Cruz’s victory in Iowa made him the first Latino primary winner, and Hillary Clinton’s victory there made her the first female primary winner ever.

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