U.S. Presidential hopeful, Bernie Sanders addressed a crowd of more than 11,000 people Saturday night – the largest crowd to date for the democratic candidate who has seen increased support in recent months for his progressive stance on a range of issues.
Sanders' speech in Phoenix, Arizona echoed the messages he has been spreading across the country during his current campaign: lamenting the level of income inequality in the country and criticizing the political influence of the “billionaire class.”
“Their greed has got to end, and we are going to end it for them,” Sanders said, as the crowd chanted “Bernie, Bernie, Bernie.”
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The huge crowd came as a surprise for many in what is considered to be a reliable Republican state.
However, Sanders is seeing increased popularity due to his stance on wage gaps and particularly his reluctance to take corporate campaign donations.
“For the last 40 years the great middle class of this country – once the envy of the world – has been disappearing,” Sanders said in his one hour speech.
“We need to stand together to make a political revolution where we create an America that works for all of us,” he continued. “Enough is enough – the billionaires are not going to have it, it’s our country. Let’s create that nation!”
The 73 year-old Senator from Vermont, who is currently Hillary Clinton's leading competition for the Democratic nomination, has seen a surge of support recently, but still remains 40 percentage points behind Clinton.
Sanders' breakthrough speech in Phoenix comes only one day after he and another Democratic Party candidate, Former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, were heckled off stage Saturday. Sanders and O’Malley were challenged by Black Lives Matter protesters, who demanded that the presidential hopefuls do more for the black community in the U.S. and address the looming racism in the criminal justice system.