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Bernie Sanders stumps for Summer Lee at Pittsburgh rally | TribLIVE.com
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Bernie Sanders stumps for Summer Lee at Pittsburgh rally

Ryan Deto
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Lilly Kubit | Tribune-Review
Senator Bernie Sanders, state Rep. Summer Lee and Mayor Ed Gainey hold hands at a rally for Lee’s congressional candidacy at The Westin Pittsburgh on Tuesday, May 12 .
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Lilly Kubit | Tribune-Review
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I, Vt.) speaks at a Summer Lee for Congress Rally in Downtown Pittsburgh on Thursday, May 12. Lee and Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey applaud in the background.
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Lilly Kubit | Tribune-Review
State Rep. and congressional candidate Summer Lee talks with Noah Davidson after speaking at a Lee for Congress Rally in Downtown Pittsburgh on Thursday, May 12.
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Lilly Kubit | Tribune-Review
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I, Vt.) speaks at a Summer Lee for Congress Rally in Downtown Pittsburgh on Thursday, May 12.
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Lilly Kubit | Tribune-Review
The crowd cheers at a Lee for Congress Rally in Downtown Pittsburgh on Thursday, May 12.
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Lilly Kubit | Tribune-Review
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I, Vt.) speaks at Summer Lee for Congress Rally in Pittsburgh; Lee and Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey (backs to the camera) listen on stage.
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Lilly Kubit | Tribune-Review
State Rep. Summer Lee holds hands with Braddock Mayor Delia Lennon-Winstead at a Lee for Congress Rally in Downtown Pittsburgh on Thursday, May 12.
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Lilly Kubit | Tribune-Review
Carine VanBuren and RJ Sabanas listen to a guest speaker during speaks at a Summer Lee for Congress Rally in Downtown Pittsburgh on Thursday, May 12.
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Lilly Kubit | Tribune-Review
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I, Vt.) speaks at a Summer Lee for Congress Rally in Downtown Pittsburgh on Thursday, May 12.
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Lilly Kubit | Tribune-Review
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I, Vt.) and state Rep. Summer Lee hug on stage at a rally in Pittsburgh for Lee’s bid for Congress.
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Lilly Kubit | Tribune-Review
Coralline Rent holds a sign in support of state Rep. Summer Lee. at a Lee for Congress Rally in Downtown Pittsburgh on Thursday, May 12.

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders rallied in Downtown Pittsburgh on Thursday in support of congressional candidate Summer Lee, in an attempt to help her win what has become a contentious race in the final days before Tuesday’s primary election.

Lee, a progressive state representative from Swissvale, is leading in polls for the Democratic nomination to represent the 12th Congressional District.

Other candidates in the 12th District primary are University of Pittsburgh law professor Jerry Dickinson, Pittsburgh lawyer Steve Irwin, entrepreneur William Parker, and nonprofit head Jeff Woodard.

The 12th Congressional District includes Pittsburgh, eastern and southern suburbs in Allegheny County, and a section of Westmoreland County that includes Murrysville, North Huntington, Penn Township, Sewickley Township, Jeannette and parts of Hempfield.

A flurry of outside spending has brought a slew of anti-Lee attack ads to Pittsburgh’s airwaves in the last few weeks of the campaign.

Thursday’s rally, which attracted a few hundred people, focused on support for labor unions, particularly for service and hospital workers, as well as protecting abortion rights.

Sanders stumped for Lee at the Westin hotel in Downtown Pittsburgh, and was joined by area union members and other progressive politicians like Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey.

“I look out at this crowd and I have no doubt that you’re looking at the next congressperson from Pittsburgh,” Sanders said. He added, “We need members of Congress that are willing to step up for working families and to take on the special interest that control this country.”

Sanders praised Lee and said she would join him in supporting raising the minimum wage, changing the tax system to make corporations pay more, backing Medicare for All, and making public universities and colleges tuition-free.

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Lee encouraged the crowd to fight for more unionized Starbucks, unionized library workers, and for union workers at UPMC, the health care giant headquartered in Pittsburgh.

“We are going to show up every single day, and we are going to bring new people into this movement,” said Lee.

Luke Rihn from the North Hills said he wasn’t aware of Lee before the rally, but is now supporting her thanks to Sanders’ backing.

“If he likes her, then I am all in,” Rihn said.

After praising Lee, Sanders said the main reason he traveled to Pittsburgh was to defend her against attack ads that are being funded by pro-Israel groups. The ads have sought to cast Lee as a phony Democrat who opposes President Joe Biden.

“I am here because we can no longer let a handful of billionaires to buy elections,” Sanders said.

Sanders said the ads misrepresent Lee, and that the last time he and Lee were together was at a rally trying to get Joe Biden elected president.

Gainey said that a grassroots movement is more powerful in campaigns than ads and mailers.

“The beauty of this is to show special interests that when the will of the people comes together, your money is only cents,” Gainey said.

So far, there has been $2.8 million in ads and mailers attacking Lee and/or supporting Irwin. Pro-Israel political groups have been responsible for the vast majority of those, and they have drawn criticism from Gainey and other Lee supporters.

Lee has received about $1.1 million in ads supporting her, mostly from nationwide progressive groups like the Justice Democrats.

Matt Gulish, a North Side resident, has seen the negative ads against Lee but he said they do nothing to dampen his enthusiasm for her. He said he supports her because “she is for working people.”

“She recognizes the biggest powerful corporations are being allowed to pollute and shift jobs overseas,” Gulish said.

The 12th District race is to replace U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle, D-Forest Hills, who is retiring at the end of this year.

Doyle has endorsed Irwin, and earlier on Thursday he criticized Sanders for not accomplishing much in Congress. Doyle said politicians like Lee and other progressive members of “the squad” — a group includes Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar — are following a similar path to Sanders and they won’t get tangible things accomplished for their districts.

“I served 12 years with Bernie Sanders in the House. Bernie was always a loner in the House,” said Doyle. “He had a lot of ideas, but didn’t make any of those law.”

Sanders has been in Congress since 1991 as a representative and senator. He has been the prime sponsor of eight bills that became law, according to GovTrack.us. Doyle has served since 1995; nine of his bills have become law.

After the rally, Lee defended her record, saying she brought back millions to her state House district. She said that when politicians are fighting for justice and equity, they can often be alone, but that changes over time.

“I won’t go into Congress with 26 years of experience; no one will,” Lee said, referring to Doyle. “But I will fight.”

She acknowledged criticism she has received from negative ads and other Democrats in the region, but said it won’t slow her campaign.

“Every cycle they have they have thrown everything at us, but it hasn’t stopped us,” said Lee.

Ryan Deto is a TribLive reporter covering politics, Pittsburgh and Allegheny County news. A native of California’s Bay Area, he joined the Trib in 2022 after spending more than six years covering Pittsburgh at the Pittsburgh City Paper, including serving as managing editor. He can be reached at rdeto@triblive.com.

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