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COVID-19 Delays US Primaries, Sparks Worries for November Election

Matt Haines

   NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - With much of America on partial lockdown, the
   coronavirus pandemic is altering nearly every aspect of people's daily
   lives. The pathogen is also having an immediate and possibly permanent
   impact on how the nation chooses its leaders.

   Lauren Jewett is a special education teacher in Louisiana, the first
   state to announce the postponement of its Democratic primary due to
   coronavirus. She is concerned issues could linger all the way to
   November's general election in which President Donald Trump will face
   the eventual Democratic nominee.

   "How will we vote? How will we register others to vote? How do we
   canvass [neighborhoods for a candidate]?" Jewett asks. "This could
   affect the outcome of November's presidential election and that
   election could affect the country for a very long time."
   Louisiana has emerged as a COVID-19 hot spot with one of the world's
   fastest growth rates for confirmed infections. Within a week, the state
   went from reporting fewer than 100 cases to nearly 1,400 on Tuesday.
   Even before Louisiana's exponential growth rates were recorded, on
   March 13, Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards ordered the state's
   April 4 primary election postponed until June 20.
   Ten other states and territories have since followed suit in delaying
   their primaries. Many Louisiana voters say they understand the need to
   protect public health, while some also note that their voice in the
   primary process effectively has been muzzled.
   

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