US Senator Bernie Sanders has issued a harsh critique of the Democratic Party following Kamala Harris’ defeat in the presidential election to Donald Trump.

In a statement, Sanders, who aligns with Democrats, criticized the party’s campaign, calling it “disastrous,” reports ABC News.

He argued that it should come as no surprise that a Democratic Party which has neglected working-class Americans now faces abandonment by these very voters. “First, it was the white working class, and now it is Latino and Black workers as well,” Sanders said.

“While the Democratic leadership defends the status quo, the American people are angry and want change. And they’re right,” he added.

Sanders, a longtime advocate for progressive policies who sought the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination in 2016 and 2020., reflected on the continued economic instability faced by Americans, citing issues like income inequality, wealth disparity, and the absence of guaranteed paid family and medical leave, the report said.

He also criticized the ongoing military aid to Israel, despite opposition from many Americans. “Today, despite strong opposition from a majority of Americans, we continue to spend billions funding the extremist Netanyahu government's all-out war against the Palestinian people which has led to the horrific humanitarian disaster of mass malnutrition and the starvation of thousands of children,” Sanders said.

“Will the big money interests and well-paid consultants who control the Democratic Party learn any real lessons from this disastrous campaign? Will they understand the pain and political alienation that tens of millions of Americans are experiencing? Do they have any ideas as to how we can take on the increasingly powerful Oligarchy which has so much economic and political power? Probably not,” Sanders remarked, according to ABC News.

He suggested that serious political discussions were now required about the future of those advocating for grassroots democracy and economic justice.