Jane O’Meara Sanders

Jane is an academic who has served in various positions at colleges across Vermont. She has a PhD in Leadership Studies in Politics and Education from the Union Institute and University, and often juggled her academic career with her husband’s campaigns. Jane O’Meara, a humble political activist who mostly chooses to forgo the title of “doctor” despite her doctorate, met Bernie Sanders on the night he won his mayoral campaign in Burlington, Vermont in 1981. The pair began a seven-year-courtship that culminated in a wedding—a civil ceremony, a common choice among interfaith couples—in 1988. Not only did the couple blend their faiths, they also blended their families. Jane had three children from a previous marriage: Dave, Carina, and Heather, who also identify as Catholic. They are listed in Bernie’s official Senate biography as his children, with no distinction from his biological son, Levi. Among their four children, Bernie and Jane now have seven grandchildren.