was an active civil rights protest organizer for the Congress of Racial Equality

led a rally at the University of Chicago administration building to protest university president George Wells Beadle's segregated campus housing policy

Sanders was active in several peace and antiwar movements
Although he opposed the war, Sanders never criticized those who fought and has been a strong supporter of veterans' benefits.

elected mayor of Burlington—Vermont's most populous city—in 1981, where he was reelected three times
1987, U.S. News & World Report ranked Sanders as one of America's best mayors.[82] As of 2013, Burlington was regarded as one of the most livable cities in the nation.

He lectured in political science at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government that year and at Hamilton College in 1991

In 1998, Sanders voted and advocated against rolling back the Glass–Steagall Legislation provisions that kept investment banks and commercial banks separate entities

served as a congressman for 16 years before being elected to the U.S. Senate in 2006. In 2012, he was reelected with 71% of the popular vote.

Polls indicate that he is among the senators most popular with their constituents
In a November 2015 Morning Consult poll, Sanders had an approval rating of 83% among his constituents, making him the most popular senator in the country