HASTINGS-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) called upon Democrats in the New York City suburbs to reelect Rep. Jamaal Bowman in order to take a stand against the deep-pocketed super PACs bankrolling Bowmans primary challenger.

Bowmans bid for a third term is one of the most significant elections in the modern history of this country, Sanders told a crowd of about 200 supporters gathered in a park on the bank of the Hudson River, because this election is not about a clash of ideas, this election is about whether billionaire super PACs can buy our democracy.

Sanders argued, with a touch of humor, for Democrats to vote for Bowman for the sake of democracy even if they dont see eye to eye with him on other matters.

I want to say a word to the people in the district and Jamaal may not agree with me, but this is what I think even if you disagree, youre a Democrat, youre going to vote in this primary, and you disagree with Jamaal on this issue, or that issue vote for Jamaal, he said. And the reason is, the most important part of this election is whether we have the courage as people to stand up to the oligarchs and tell these billionaires theyre not going to control our government.

Westchester County Executive George Latimer, a more moderate Democrat, is seeking to defeat Bowman in Tuesdays primary in New Yorks 16th Congressional District, a solid Democratic seat where the general election is not competitive.

With the support of well-resourced pro-Israel groups who have endorsed him, as well as a cryptocurrency industry super PAC, Latimer now has a double-digit lead over Bowman, according to the only public poll in the race. Super PACs backing Latimer have outspent Bowmans allied super PACs by a roughly 9-to-1 margin , with a group tied to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) alone spending more than $14.6 million to blast Bowman.