April 9, 2020
On Wednesday, New Jersey and Virginia became the latest states to announce delays in primary voting due to the spread of COVID-19. Virginia, which already had its presidential primaries before the outbreak intensified, will be holding its primaries for Congress on June 23 instead of the previously scheduled June 9. New Jersey will move both its state and presidential primaries from June 2 to July 7.
The two states join 15 others in delaying their primaries, and were the first ones to announce this decision after the state of Wisconsin proceeded with their scheduled voting on Tuesday. Governor Tony Evers (D) had originally announced that the primaries would be delayed, but the decision was overturned by the state Supreme Court, which is primarily conservative. In addition to staffing shortages and decreased polling stations, the number of voters gathered in line for several hours has sparked concerns of a rise in cases throughout Wisconsin. In light of this incident, as well as general concerns over the prolonged effect of the pandemic, many states are exploring vote-by-mail options.
Sources:
- Cassidy, Christina A. 2020, April 8. New Jersey, Virginia push back primaries amid outbreak. Associated Press. https://apnews.com/0bc66f81f1fdda7b1fdae67218050d90
- Bauer, Scott. 2020, April 8. Wisconsin worried about spike in virus cases due to election. Associated Press. https://apnews.com/054521c79cb6c025f183a73284bef655