--- title: Bernie Sanders Supports DNC Chair’s Opponent in Primary description: Bernie Sanders supports Tim Canova in his Democratic primary fight against Democratic National Committee Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz canonical: https://time.com/4344236/bernie-sanders-dnc-chair-opponent/ author: Melissa Chan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-05-22T15:19:44.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-31T09:39:49.892Z article:section: Politics og:title: Bernie Sanders Says He Supports DNC Chair’s Opponent in Primary og:description: He also would not re-appoint her as DNC chair og:url: https://time.com/4344236/bernie-sanders-dnc-chair-opponent/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt84ade2943452a1a0/6988944eab6d77636f6a9ca1/bernie-sanders-dnc-opponent.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Democratic Presidential Candidate Bernie Sanders Holds Campaign Rally In Bay Area og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Bernie Sanders Says He Supports DNC Chair’s Opponent in Primary twitter:description: He also would not re-appoint her as DNC chair twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt84ade2943452a1a0/6988944eab6d77636f6a9ca1/bernie-sanders-dnc-opponent.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Bernie Sanders Says He Supports DNC Chair’s Opponent in Primary  by [Melissa Chan](https://time.com/author/melissa-chan/)  ## Melissa Chan May 22, 2016 3:19 PM UTC  Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders speaks at a campaign rally at Waterfront Park on May 18, 2016 in Vallejo, California. Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders speaks at a campaign rally at Waterfront Park on May 18, 2016 in Vallejo, California.Justin Sullivan—Getty Images  by [Melissa Chan](https://time.com/author/melissa-chan/)  ## Melissa Chan May 22, 2016 3:19 PM UTC Bernie Sanders is [throwing his support behind Tim Canova](http://www.cnn.com/2016/05/21/politics/bernie-sanders-debbie-wasserman-schultz/index.html) in his upcoming Democratic primary fight against Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairwoman [Debbie Wasserman Schultz](http://time.com/4282694/democratic-national-committee-diversity-release/?iid=sr-link4) in Florida, he said Saturday. The Vermont senator, whose presidential campaign has had conflicts [with the DNC](http://time.com/4155942/bernie-sanders-voter-data-breach-lawsuit/?iid=sr-link3) during his run for the White House, told CNN’s _State of the Union_ that Canova is more fit to lead Florida’s 23rd congressional district. “Well, clearly, I favor her opponent,” Sanders said. “His views are much closer to mine than as to Wasserman Shultz’s.” He also said he would boot Wasserman Schultz from the helm of the DNC if he wins the presidency. Wasserman Schultz said in a statement to CNN that she would stay “neutral” in the Democratic presidential race despite Sanders’ endorsement. “I am so proud to serve the people of Florida’s 23rd district and I am confident that they know that I am an effective fighter and advocate on their behalf in Congress,” Wasserman Schultz said. “Even though Senator Sanders has endorsed my opponent, I remain, as I have been from the beginning, neutral in the presidential Democratic primary. I look forward to working together with him for Democratic victories in the fall.” Bernie Sanders Supports DNC Chair’s Opponent in Primary ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4344236/bernie-sanders-dnc-chair-opponent/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4344236/bernie-sanders-dnc-chair-opponent/"},"headline":"Bernie Sanders Says He Supports DNC Chair’s Opponent in Primary","datePublished":"2016-05-22T15:19:44.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T09:39:49.892Z","description":"He also would not re-appoint her as DNC chair","url":"https://time.com/4344236/bernie-sanders-dnc-chair-opponent/","keywords":["2016 Election","2016 Election topic"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt84ade2943452a1a0/6988944eab6d77636f6a9ca1/bernie-sanders-dnc-opponent.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Melissa Chan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/melissa-chan/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt84ade2943452a1a0/6988944eab6d77636f6a9ca1/bernie-sanders-dnc-opponent.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Democratic Presidential Candidate Bernie Sanders Holds Campaign Rally In Bay Area","caption":"Democratic Presidential Candidate Bernie Sanders Holds Campaign Rally In Bay Area","creditText":"Justin Sullivan—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/2016-election/","name":"2016 Election"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4344236/bernie-sanders-dnc-chair-opponent/","name":"Bernie Sanders Says He Supports DNC Chair’s Opponent in Primary"}}]}] ```