By MADISON RUDE/Murphy News Service

People of all ages and backgrounds came out Saturday to join in a mile-long March4Bernie rally as presidential candidate U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont looked to gain more political traction going into the Feb. 1 Iowa Caucus.

Surprise guests Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield of Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream supplied frozen treats to supporters while vocalizing their own support for the candidate.

“Jerry and I have been constituents of Bernie for 30 years and we have never gone out campaigning for a presidential candidate before, but Bernie is not your typical presidential candidate,” Cohen told a group of supporters before the march.

“Very simply, Ben and I are all in for Bernie,” Greenfield echoed to the crowd. “Anything we can do to help support Bernie, we’re happy to do.”

Supporters from organizations around the Twin Cities, including 15 Now, Black Lives Matter and the Socialist Movement came out to support their causes in solidarity with Sander’s revolutionary message.

Claire Thiele, a supporter from the 15 Now campaign, said she came out to “address the economic and racial inequality in the cities.”

Thiele said the 15 Now campaign is advocating for a higher minimum wage because “we can’t wait for the city council to realize it’s politically convenient for them, so we’re taking it to the voters.”

Other Sanders followers came to join the political revolution that the candidate has touted in recent months of his campaign.

“The idea here is political revolution … you don’t just elect the guy and then magic happens, it’s a process,” supporter Brian Shea said.

“I think the dumbing down of America has gone too far, we need to empower people and we need to do this together, we’re stronger together,” supporter Yolanda Fossen added.

The rally came just four days after Sanders spoke to a crowd of nearly 15,000 in St. Paul Tuesday night. Many marches throughout the country brought more awareness to Sanders’ grassroots movement leading up the today’s caucus in Iowa.

“The more people hear about him, it seems, the more support he gets,” event coordinator Chris Gray said. “I think big events like this help really get the message out that there are a lot of people who support him.”

All the hype, however, might not be enough for Sanders to win the Democratic nomination. Polls have shown Sanders and former U.S. Secretary of State and First Lady Hillary Clinton are almost tied in Iowa

Sanders supporters Saturday said they believe their candidate’s track record is in his favor.

“I think Hillary probably listens to Wall Street more than she listens to the people,” John Heppen, a professor of geography at University of Wisconsin-River Falls said.

“It’s plain to see who [Hillary] raises money from, who her friends are, and I think it’s pretty clear where she’s coming from,” Heppen, a Sanders supporter, said.

Ice cream icon Ben Cohen left the crowd with one resounding statement of support before they began their march:

“If you’re happy with what’s going on in the country, vote for Hillary, she’ll maintain it, but if you’ve had enough of big money in politics, if you want to get back to a government of the people, by the people, for the people, Bernie is our only choice!”

Reporter Madison Rude is studying journalism at the University of Minnesota.