US Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders has cancelled his upcoming campaign events after undergoing surgery for an artery blockage.
His senior campaign advisor Jeff Weaver said he experienced some chest discomfort at an event yesterday evening.
“Following medical evaluation and testing, he was found to have a blockage in one artery and two stents were successfully inserted,” he said.
He said he is conversing and in good spirits but will be resting up over the next few days.
“We are cancelling his events and appearances until further notice and we wil continue to provide appropriate updates,” he said.
The 78-year-old Vermont senator is one of 19 candidates in the running for the Democratic nomination in the 2020 election.
He lost out to Hillary Clinton for the nomination in 2016.
The other two frontrunners for the nomination are also in their 70s – Joe Biden is 76, while Elizabeth Warren is 70.
Both were among the candidates to wish Senator Sanders a speedy recovery this afternoon.
.@DrBiden and I are sending our best wishes to @BernieSanders, Jane, and the whole Sanders family. Anyone who knows Bernie understands what a force he is. We are confident that he will have a full and speedy recovery and look forward to seeing him on the trail soon.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) October 2, 2019
Bruce, Team Warren, and I are sending all our best wishes for a speedy recovery to @BernieSanders. I hope to see my friend back on the campaign trail very soon.
— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) October 2, 2019
Meanwhile, California Senator Kamala Harris said: “If there's one thing I know about him, he's a fighter and I look forward to seeing him on the campaign trail soon.”
San Antonio mayor Julian Castro said his whole team had Mr Sanders “in their thoughts.”
Thinking of @BernieSanders today and wishing him a speedy recovery. If there's one thing I know about him, he's a fighter and I look forward to seeing him on the campaign trail soon.
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) October 2, 2019
