Three states hold primaries as coronavirus upends 2020 election – By Lauren Gambino (The Guardian) / March 17 2020
Joe Biden poised for another successful night as Arizona, Florida, Illinois, but not Ohio, head to the polls
Three states will hold their presidential primaries as scheduled on Tuesday, but an election in Ohio was thrust into chaos when the state defied a judge’s orders and proceeded to delay the election hours before polls open amid concerns over the coronavirus outbreak.
Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders are competing again on Tuesday for the opportunity to lead their party in a campaign season suddenly overshadowed by a pandemic that closed borders, shaken the economy and swept every corner of public life.
“It’s like you are having an argument with your neighbor over the fence and all of the sudden a meteor lands in the middle of your street,” said Jared Leopold, a former spokesman for Washington governor Jay Inslee’s presidential campaign. “It immediately refocuses the debate.”
More than 4,600 Americans have tested positive for the virus, despite limited testing, with 85 deaths. The message from officials was that the outbreak would worsen dramatically. On Sunday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that no gatherings with 50 people or more be held in the US for the next eight weeks. Trump on Monday advised people not to gather in groups of more than 10, and asked people to stay away from public spaces, including bars and restaurants in an effort to slow the spread of what he called an “invisible enemy”.
Against that backdrop, Mike DeWine, the Republican governor of Ohio, announced on Monday that he would seek to postpone the election until 2 June. But hours later an Ohio county judge rejected the request, saying that it would set a terrible precedent for the court to cancel an election at the eleventh hour.
Continue to article: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/mar/17/2020-four-states-primaries-coronavirus-election
