Bernie Sanders throws support behind Hillary Clinton at raucous New Hampshire rally

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders threw his considerable support behind former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Tuesday, vowing to help her defeat presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump.

Appearing at a raucous rally in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, the upstart independent candidate who captured a massive following during the primaries with his populist message, pledged to get behind the Democratic ticket to be decided in Philadelphia at the end of the month.

“Hillary Clinton will make an outstanding president and I am proud to stand with her here today,” Sanders said. "She will be the Democratic nominee for president and I intend to do everything I can to make certain she will be the next president of the United States."

"I have come here today not to talk about the past but to focus on the future. That future will be shaped more by what happens on November 8 in voting booths across our nation than by any other event in the world," he continued. "I have come here to make it as clear as possible as to why I am endorsing Hillary Clinton and why she must become our next president."

"This election is about which candidate will nominate Supreme Court justices who are prepared to overturn the disastrous Citizens United decision which allows billionaires to buy elections and undermine our democracy; about who will appoint new justices on the Supreme Court who will defend a woman’s right to choose, the rights of the LGBT community, workers’ rights, the needs of minorities and immigrants, and the government’s ability to protect our environment."

"If you don’t believe this election is important, take a moment to think about the Supreme Court justices that Donald Trump will nominate, and what that means to civil liberties, equal rights and the future of our country."

The endorsement by Sanders has been long coming, following a sometimes bitter campaign, with the candidate first working to shape the Democratic platform before giving his approval to Clinton. Sanders has long said that defeating Trump was paramount.

According to a statement from both campaigns before the rally, the two rivals said they were dedicated to "building an America that is stronger together and an economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top," reflecting a main theme of the Sanders campaign.