How Many People Are Named Bernie Sanders?
There are approximately 4 people named Bernie Sanders living in the United States today. That makes this name combination very rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 85,688,585 Americans.
This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Bernie with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Sanders. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and Census background data where it is available.
Estimated People with This Name
4
1 in 85,688,585 Americans
Combination Rarity
Very Rare
First Name
View full profileBernie
Last Name
View full profileSanders
Bernie: Popularity Over Time
Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Bernie. The peak year was 1960 with 266 births. The average person named Bernie today is 62 years old.
Ancestry of the First Name Bernie
In the 2020 Census, the first name Bernie was most commonly recorded among people who identified as White (62.32%). The next largest recorded groups were Hispanic (18.84%) and Black (8.45%).
These percentages describe the people who had the first name Bernie in the 2020 Census. They do not tell you the deeper origin or meaning of the name itself.
Read this as a snapshot of who already had the name in 2020, not as a trend line. The SSA chart above is still the better way to see how Bernie rose or fell over time.
Ancestry of the Sanders Surname
The surname Sanders was most commonly recorded among people who identified as White in the 2020 Census.
This is a self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people who had the surname Sanders in the published Census surname tables. It gives useful context around who was recorded with the name, but it does not tell the full family history of every Boone line.
How we calculated this
The first name "Bernie" has an estimated frequency of < 0.0001% among living Americans, based on SSA birth records from 1880 to 2024 adjusted for mortality using CDC 2023 life tables.
The surname "Sanders" appears at a rate of 74.27 per 100,000 people in the 2020 U.S. Census.
We do not use the Census first-name snapshot for the main estimate because it is only published once every 10 years. The latest public first-name Census file is from 2020, which is already 6 years old. SSA birth records plus CDC survival data give a better current estimate of how many people with the first name Bernie are likely to be alive now.
Multiplying these frequencies against the U.S. population of ~343 million gives 4 estimated people. This assumes first names and last names are statistically independent. Full methodology.
Other people named Bernie
Other people with the surname Sanders
Bernie Sanders: Questions and Answers
How many people are named Bernie Sanders?
We estimate approximately 4 people named Bernie Sanders are alive in the United States today. The first name Bernie is shared by 5,586 Americans, and the surname Sanders is shared by 254,558.
How rare is the name Bernie Sanders?
This name combination is classified as Very Rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 85,688,585 Americans. The first name Bernie is rare and the surname Sanders is common.
Is Bernie a male or female name?
Bernie is predominantly male, with 85.7% of bearers being male and 14.3% female. It peaked in popularity in 1960 and the average bearer today is 62 years old.
What does the Census say about the first name Bernie?
In the 2020 Census, the first name Bernie was most commonly recorded among people who identified as White (62.32%). The next largest recorded groups were Hispanic (18.84%) and Black (8.45%). These percentages describe the people who had the name in the 2020 Census, not the deeper origin of the name itself.
Where does this data come from?
First name data comes from the Social Security Administration (1880 to 2024), adjusted for survival using CDC 2023 life tables. When available, first-name Census background data comes from the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau first-name tables. Surname data comes from the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau. Full methodology.
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