Bernie Sanders declines to endorse Wisconsin governor candidate Francesca Hong
The Vermont senator said he is not familiar with the race ahead of the 11 August Democratic primary
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
Bernie Sanders declines to endorse Wisconsin governor candidate Francesca Hong
Photograph: 연합뉴스-Yonhap News Agency (embedded from source)
What this story says
- Bernie Sanders said he does not expect to endorse Francesca Hong in the Wisconsin governor race, telling a podcast he is not familiar with it.
- Hong is a Democratic candidate in the 11 August primary and would become the first Korean-American governor if elected.
- Right-rated outlets led on Sanders’ refusal to endorse, while the centre-rated report carried his explanation that he is focused on congressional races.
- No left-rated outlet ran the story, an omission noted in the coverage comparison below.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 8 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 1 of the 9 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .
Trust
56/100
Craft
95/100
Hype
55/100
9 sources · methodology
Thin on the left so far
None of the 8 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated left.
This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.
Bernie Sanders, the independent senator from Vermont, said he does not expect to endorse Francesca Hong in the Wisconsin governor race. Hong is a Democratic state representative and a candidate in the 11 August 2026 primary. She would become the first Korean-American governor if elected.
Sanders made the statement on 6 August during an interview on the podcast "Pod Save America". Asked if he would endorse Hong, he replied, "I don’t think so." He said he had met Hong a few years earlier in Wisconsin but added, "This is not a race that I know a lot about." Sanders said his focus is on ensuring Democrats win control of the House and Senate in the November elections to counter President Donald Trump’s policies.
The Wisconsin Democratic primary for governor is scheduled for 11 August. Hong is described in the reports as a democratic socialist and a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. She has been leading in polls ahead of the primary.
What the coverage left out
No left-rated outlet ran the story. None of the right-rated digests mentioned Hong’s policy positions or her campaign platform. Only Yonhap News Agency’s full report carried Sanders’ explanation that he is focused on congressional races rather than the governor’s race.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 8 times, most recently on 7 Aug 2026, 00:15, and will add the sides that appear.
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
0 rated outlets
No outlet rated left has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.
Centre
1 rated outlet
- The Hill, the only centre-rated outlet to run the story, led on Sanders’ statement that he does not expect to endorse Hong. Its digest carried his explanation that he is not familiar with the race and is focused on congressional elections. The report did not mention Republican reactions or Hong’s past statements.
Right
7 rated outlets
- All seven right-rated digests led on Sanders’ refusal to endorse Hong. The Washington Times and Breitbart noted that he cited lack of familiarity with the race. Fox News and RedState framed the refusal as Sanders distancing himself from Hong, with Fox News quoting his remark that he is "just not that familiar" with the race.
- Yonhap News Agency, the only right-rated outlet to publish a full report, led on Sanders’ statement and included his explanation that he is focused on congressional races. It also reported Republican criticism of Hong, including her past remarks on Thanksgiving. The report quoted a Republican candidate’s social media post mocking Sanders’ refusal to endorse Hong, calling it evidence that Hong is "too radical".
- Spiked and Twitchy used headlines that framed Hong as extreme. Spiked called her "the unhinged face of post-Floyd America", while Twitchy’s headline asked if she was "too crazy for Bernie". RedState’s headline described her as a "socialist train wreck".
Read it at the source
9 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
Centre
1Right
7- U.S. Progressive Leader Sanders Says Korean-American Governor Candidate "Will Not Be Revealed" (opens 연합뉴스-Yonhap News Agency in a new tab)
연합뉴스-Yonhap News Agency — is 연합뉴스-Yonhap News Agency biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Bernie Sanders won’t endorse Hong in Wisconsin governor race (opens Washington Times in a new tab)
Washington Times — is Washington Times biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Too Bonkers for Bernie: Even Sanders Won't Touch This Socialist Train Wreck (opens RedState in a new tab)
RedState — is RedState biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
- Sanders' answer when asked if he will endorse socialist Hong in Wisconsin sparks instant mockery: 'Says a lot' (opens Fox News in a new tab)
- Francesca Hong: the final boss of woke? (opens Spiked in a new tab)
SpikedOpinion
- YIKES! It Appears That Francesca Hong Is Even 'Too Crazy for Bernie' (opens Twitchy in a new tab)
Twitchy — is Twitchy biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
- Bernie Sanders Declines to Endorse Francesca Hong in Wisconsin Governor's Race (opens Breitbart in a new tab)
Not rated
1How did this read?
About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.
