Voters line-up to cast their ballots at a polling station set up at Noonday Baptist Church for the mid-term elections on November 6, 2018 in Marietta, Georgia. (Photo: Jessica McGowan/Getty Images)
Mar 16, 2020
A growing chorus of progressives, journalists, and political observers calling for the delay of U.S. primary elections scheduled for Tuesday and beyond is becoming more alarmed as state and party officials appear determined to go ahead with the six state contests set for March 17 despite warnings from federal health officials about the danger of large in-person gatherings during the coronavirus outbreak.
"We should delay these elections until people's legitimate fears are allayed," tweeted Young Turks founder and CEO Cenk Uygur.
\u201cPeople are not going to come out to vote next Tuesday because of concerns over #CoronaOutbreak. This will be especially true for elderly voters, which is actually particularly unfair to @JoeBiden. We should delay these elections until people\u2019s legitimate fears are allayed.\u201d— Cenk Uygur (@Cenk Uygur) 1584053042
As People's Policy Project head Matt Bruenig noted, the effect of the virus on voting threatens to delegitimatize the Democratic primary.
"It will be impossible to determine a legitimate winner of the Dem primary due to virus," tweeted Bruenig, "few have come to terms with this yet."
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), one of the two remaining frontrunners for the Democratic nomination, told CNN's Anderson Cooper Sunday night that he was uncertain of the wisdom in going forward with Tuesday's elections in Florida, Arizona, Illinois, and Ohio. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced Monday afternoon he would seek to delay the primary.
"I would hope the governors listen to the public health experts and they're saying is, as you just indicated, we don't want gatherings of 50 or more people," Sanders tod Cooper. "And when I think about some of the elderly people sitting behind the desks, registering people and all that, does that make a lot of sense? I'm not sure that it does."
\u201cBernie Sanders fires back at his Democratic rival Joe Biden\u2019s attack on his health care plan, saying he \u201cdistorted virtually everything that I\u2019m trying to do here\u201d https://t.co/GyT4WEkjZQ #DemDebate\u201d— Anderson Cooper 360\u00b0 (@Anderson Cooper 360\u00b0) 1584327472
Officials have already postponed voting in Georgia and Louisiana, as Chapo Trap House host Virgil Texas pointed out on Twitter.
"Staggeringly irresponsible to not postpone Tuesday primaries (as Louisiana has), a decision made today by three Republican Secretaries of State plus one Democrat," said Texas. "Poll workers tend to be elderly, thus most vulnerable to Covid-19."
"Obviously reduced turnout among older voters would benefit Bernie Sanders," he added. "It doesn't matter--Tuesday's results will be delegitimized by what could be drastically reduced turnout."
Over 1,600 people, including 113 health professionals, have signed onto an open letter demanding the March primaries be delayed in the interest of public health.
Voting rights expert Ari Berman, a journalist with Mother Jones, said on Twitter Sunday that the time is now for a vote-by-mail system.
"We urgently need universal vote by mail so everyone can participate," said Berman. "Voters shouldn't have to choose between health and ballot."
On March 11, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) introduced legislation to mandate emergency vote-by-mail due to the coronavirus outbreak. The bill calls for universalizing vote-by-mail should a quarter of U.S. states declare states of emergency over the pandemic.
"No voter should have to choose between exercising their constitutional right and putting their health at risk," Wyden said in a statement. "When disaster strikes, the safest route for seniors, individuals with compromised immune systems or other at-risk populations is to provide every voter with a paper ballot they can return by mail or drop-off site."
The Intercept's Ryan Grim proposed suspending campaigns until the crisis passed to ensure less people voting.
"The best approach would be to postpone the primaries and move to a vote-by-mail system," said Grim. "But potentially millions of people are scheduled to go to the polls tomorrow and there's no plan in place for mail."
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
A growing chorus of progressives, journalists, and political observers calling for the delay of U.S. primary elections scheduled for Tuesday and beyond is becoming more alarmed as state and party officials appear determined to go ahead with the six state contests set for March 17 despite warnings from federal health officials about the danger of large in-person gatherings during the coronavirus outbreak.
"We should delay these elections until people's legitimate fears are allayed," tweeted Young Turks founder and CEO Cenk Uygur.
\u201cPeople are not going to come out to vote next Tuesday because of concerns over #CoronaOutbreak. This will be especially true for elderly voters, which is actually particularly unfair to @JoeBiden. We should delay these elections until people\u2019s legitimate fears are allayed.\u201d— Cenk Uygur (@Cenk Uygur) 1584053042
As People's Policy Project head Matt Bruenig noted, the effect of the virus on voting threatens to delegitimatize the Democratic primary.
"It will be impossible to determine a legitimate winner of the Dem primary due to virus," tweeted Bruenig, "few have come to terms with this yet."
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), one of the two remaining frontrunners for the Democratic nomination, told CNN's Anderson Cooper Sunday night that he was uncertain of the wisdom in going forward with Tuesday's elections in Florida, Arizona, Illinois, and Ohio. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced Monday afternoon he would seek to delay the primary.
"I would hope the governors listen to the public health experts and they're saying is, as you just indicated, we don't want gatherings of 50 or more people," Sanders tod Cooper. "And when I think about some of the elderly people sitting behind the desks, registering people and all that, does that make a lot of sense? I'm not sure that it does."
\u201cBernie Sanders fires back at his Democratic rival Joe Biden\u2019s attack on his health care plan, saying he \u201cdistorted virtually everything that I\u2019m trying to do here\u201d https://t.co/GyT4WEkjZQ #DemDebate\u201d— Anderson Cooper 360\u00b0 (@Anderson Cooper 360\u00b0) 1584327472
Officials have already postponed voting in Georgia and Louisiana, as Chapo Trap House host Virgil Texas pointed out on Twitter.
"Staggeringly irresponsible to not postpone Tuesday primaries (as Louisiana has), a decision made today by three Republican Secretaries of State plus one Democrat," said Texas. "Poll workers tend to be elderly, thus most vulnerable to Covid-19."
"Obviously reduced turnout among older voters would benefit Bernie Sanders," he added. "It doesn't matter--Tuesday's results will be delegitimized by what could be drastically reduced turnout."
Over 1,600 people, including 113 health professionals, have signed onto an open letter demanding the March primaries be delayed in the interest of public health.
Voting rights expert Ari Berman, a journalist with Mother Jones, said on Twitter Sunday that the time is now for a vote-by-mail system.
"We urgently need universal vote by mail so everyone can participate," said Berman. "Voters shouldn't have to choose between health and ballot."
On March 11, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) introduced legislation to mandate emergency vote-by-mail due to the coronavirus outbreak. The bill calls for universalizing vote-by-mail should a quarter of U.S. states declare states of emergency over the pandemic.
"No voter should have to choose between exercising their constitutional right and putting their health at risk," Wyden said in a statement. "When disaster strikes, the safest route for seniors, individuals with compromised immune systems or other at-risk populations is to provide every voter with a paper ballot they can return by mail or drop-off site."
The Intercept's Ryan Grim proposed suspending campaigns until the crisis passed to ensure less people voting.
"The best approach would be to postpone the primaries and move to a vote-by-mail system," said Grim. "But potentially millions of people are scheduled to go to the polls tomorrow and there's no plan in place for mail."
A growing chorus of progressives, journalists, and political observers calling for the delay of U.S. primary elections scheduled for Tuesday and beyond is becoming more alarmed as state and party officials appear determined to go ahead with the six state contests set for March 17 despite warnings from federal health officials about the danger of large in-person gatherings during the coronavirus outbreak.
"We should delay these elections until people's legitimate fears are allayed," tweeted Young Turks founder and CEO Cenk Uygur.
\u201cPeople are not going to come out to vote next Tuesday because of concerns over #CoronaOutbreak. This will be especially true for elderly voters, which is actually particularly unfair to @JoeBiden. We should delay these elections until people\u2019s legitimate fears are allayed.\u201d— Cenk Uygur (@Cenk Uygur) 1584053042
As People's Policy Project head Matt Bruenig noted, the effect of the virus on voting threatens to delegitimatize the Democratic primary.
"It will be impossible to determine a legitimate winner of the Dem primary due to virus," tweeted Bruenig, "few have come to terms with this yet."
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), one of the two remaining frontrunners for the Democratic nomination, told CNN's Anderson Cooper Sunday night that he was uncertain of the wisdom in going forward with Tuesday's elections in Florida, Arizona, Illinois, and Ohio. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced Monday afternoon he would seek to delay the primary.
"I would hope the governors listen to the public health experts and they're saying is, as you just indicated, we don't want gatherings of 50 or more people," Sanders tod Cooper. "And when I think about some of the elderly people sitting behind the desks, registering people and all that, does that make a lot of sense? I'm not sure that it does."
\u201cBernie Sanders fires back at his Democratic rival Joe Biden\u2019s attack on his health care plan, saying he \u201cdistorted virtually everything that I\u2019m trying to do here\u201d https://t.co/GyT4WEkjZQ #DemDebate\u201d— Anderson Cooper 360\u00b0 (@Anderson Cooper 360\u00b0) 1584327472
Officials have already postponed voting in Georgia and Louisiana, as Chapo Trap House host Virgil Texas pointed out on Twitter.
"Staggeringly irresponsible to not postpone Tuesday primaries (as Louisiana has), a decision made today by three Republican Secretaries of State plus one Democrat," said Texas. "Poll workers tend to be elderly, thus most vulnerable to Covid-19."
"Obviously reduced turnout among older voters would benefit Bernie Sanders," he added. "It doesn't matter--Tuesday's results will be delegitimized by what could be drastically reduced turnout."
Over 1,600 people, including 113 health professionals, have signed onto an open letter demanding the March primaries be delayed in the interest of public health.
Voting rights expert Ari Berman, a journalist with Mother Jones, said on Twitter Sunday that the time is now for a vote-by-mail system.
"We urgently need universal vote by mail so everyone can participate," said Berman. "Voters shouldn't have to choose between health and ballot."
On March 11, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) introduced legislation to mandate emergency vote-by-mail due to the coronavirus outbreak. The bill calls for universalizing vote-by-mail should a quarter of U.S. states declare states of emergency over the pandemic.
"No voter should have to choose between exercising their constitutional right and putting their health at risk," Wyden said in a statement. "When disaster strikes, the safest route for seniors, individuals with compromised immune systems or other at-risk populations is to provide every voter with a paper ballot they can return by mail or drop-off site."
The Intercept's Ryan Grim proposed suspending campaigns until the crisis passed to ensure less people voting.
"The best approach would be to postpone the primaries and move to a vote-by-mail system," said Grim. "But potentially millions of people are scheduled to go to the polls tomorrow and there's no plan in place for mail."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.