Coronavirus is disrupting the 2020 election. Here’s a list of all the primaries that have been postponed

Other states have adjusted their election schedules as the coronavirus pandemic rages across the country, paralyzing normal activity.

Wyoming has canceled the in-person portion of its Democratic caucus, which is scheduled for April 4, encouraging mail-in votes instead and also urging voters to pick up and drop off individual ballots.

Alaska, whose primary is scheduled for the same date, also canceled the in-person voting portion, replacing it with “a more extensive vote-by-mail process,” the Alaska Democratic Party Executive Committee said in a release.

West Virginia will most likely not postpone its primary on May 12, Mike Queen, deputy chief of staff and communications director for the secretary of state’s office, said to CNBC. The state is urging its 1.2 million voters to fill out absentee ballots, but has taken precautions for anyone planning to vote in person. 

“We are maintaining the space requirements that the CDC has recommended,” Queen said. “And we are only allowing so many people in the polling locations at any time. We have looked into the purchase of wipes and screen wipes to sanitize [the polling spaces and locations]. We have the luxury of a month to pull this plan together. We’re a little bit more fortunate than the other states.”

Nebraska is also “unlikely” to postpone its May 12 primary, Cindi Allen, assistant secretary of state, told CNBC. 

There are still 11 more Democratic primary dates, with 26 states and territories gearing up to cast ballots. Delegate-rich states New York, with 274 delegates, and Pennsylvania, with 186, are both set to hold primaries on April 28. 

Despite these disruptions, the Democratic National Committee has indicated that it plans to move forward with its convention set for July 13-16.

“As we navigate the unprecedented challenge of responding to the coronavirus, we’re exploring a range of contingency options to ensure we can deliver a successful convention without unnecessary risk to public health,” said Katie Peters, communications director for the Democratic National Convention Committee. “This is a very fluid situation — and the convention is still more than three months away. We are committed to sharing updates with the public in the coming weeks and months as our plans continue to take shape.”

The coronavirus, which is believed to have originated in Wuhan, China, has spread to dozens of countries, with more than 387,382 confirmed cases worldwide and at least 16,767 deaths so far, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. There are at least 46,450 cases in the United States and at least 595 deaths, according to the latest tallies. e

Article source: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/24/coronavirus-update-states-that-have-postponed-2020-primaries.html