--- title: Bernie Sanders Wins TIME 100 Reader Poll description: Bernie Sanders has won the TIME 100 reader poll, topping not only his rival Hillary Clinton but a host of world leaders and cultural figures canonical: https://time.com/4292589/bernie-sanders-time-100-poll-winner/ author: TIME Staff article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-04-14T04:00:23.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-07-21T07:15:08.343Z article:section: Politics og:title: Bernie Sanders Wins TIME 100 Reader Poll og:description: He gets more than three times as many votes as Hillary Clinton og:url: https://time.com/4292589/bernie-sanders-time-100-poll-winner/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt49b9c06fc4172196/69887d65cf40a862b6c41f02/timepol-democrat-debate-hillary-clinton-bernie-sanders-03.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3500 og:image:height: 1969 og:image:alt: TIMEPOL Bernie Sanders Hillary Clinton og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Bernie Sanders Wins TIME 100 Reader Poll twitter:description: He gets more than three times as many votes as Hillary Clinton twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt49b9c06fc4172196/69887d65cf40a862b6c41f02/timepol-democrat-debate-hillary-clinton-bernie-sanders-03.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Bernie Sanders Wins TIME 100 Reader Poll > Sponsored content. 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Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. It reaches 85,000 subscribers with a 37.0% open rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. by [TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Apr 14, 2016 4:00 AM UTC  Democratic. presidential candidate, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders appears with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at a debate in Milwaukee on Feb. 11, 2016. Democratic. presidential candidate, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders appears with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at a debate in Milwaukee on Feb. 11, 2016. Darren Hauck—Reuters by [TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Apr 14, 2016 4:00 AM UTC Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders has [won](http://time.com/4264934/2016-time-100-poll-results/) the [TIME 100 reader poll](http://time.com/4264746/2016-time-100-poll/), topping not only his rival Hillary Clinton but also a host of world leaders and cultural figures for who TIME readers think should appear on our annual list of the most influential people in the world. Sanders finished with 3.3% of the total “yes” votes when the poll closed at midnight on Thursday, edging out the South Korean boy band Big Bang’s 2.9%, Burmese leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s 2.2%, and President Obama’s 2%. Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai, Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, Michelle Obama, Pope Francis and Leonardo DiCaprio round out the top 10\. Clinton, Sanders’ opponent for the Democratic nomination, finished with 1% of the yes votes. Sanders, who has long benefited from digitally active supporters, [led the reader poll from the start](http://time.com/4272078/bernie-sanders-time-100-poll/). While he badly lags Clinton in winning the delegates needed to capture the presidential nomination, his populist rhetoric and emphasis on income inequality has allowed him to sustain a stronger-than-expected challenge to Clinton while also helping frame the debate in the Democratic contest. The TIME 100 is comprised of world leaders, great minds in science and technology, outstanding figures in the arts and other icons of the moment. 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