Badgering Wis. Bern pushes for Tue. primary to be put off
Bernie Sanders called on Wisconsin officials Wednesday to push back next week’s Democratic primary amid the worsening coronavirus outbreak, charging they are forcing voters to “put their lives on the line” by hosting the election as planned.
In a statement, the leftwing Vermont senator noted more than a dozen other states have already delayed their primaries and urged Wisconsin to follow their lead, as the country scrambles to maintain social distancing guidelines aimed at slowing the spread of COVID-19.
“People should not be forced to put their lives on the line to vote, which is why 15 states are now following the advice of public health experts and delaying their elections,” Sanders said in a statement. “We urge Wisconsin to join them.”
Wisconsin’s primary is set for Tuesday.
Sanders, who’s facing pressure to concede the race to Joe Biden, urged Wisconsin to extend early voting and work toward implementing a vote-by-mail system across the board, as some other states have.
“While we wait for a decision, we urge our supporters to vote by mail,” said Sanders, who won Wisconsin in the 2016 Democratic race against Hillary Clinton.
Biden, who emerged as the likely Democratic nominee after sweeping all three March 17 primaries, did not immediately chime in on the Wisconsin contest.
The former vice president did however tell NBC News he has a hard time imagining July’s Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee — Wisconsin’s largest city — will go ahead as planned.
“It’s hard to envision that,” Biden said. “The fact is it may have to be different.”
Sanders made the call for a Wisconsin primary delay as a new poll from the Marquette Law School showed him trailing Biden in the Badger State by 28%.
Instead of delaying the April 7 contest, Wisconsin officials are urging people to vote by mail as much as possible while keeping polling places open on Election Day.
Making matters more complicated, Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers last week signed a statewide stay-at-home order.
So far, at least 1,400 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in the state, accounting for a fraction of the more than 190,000 cases across the country.
Wisconsin poll workers have dropped out en masse amid the spiraling pandemic, prompting Evers to announce Wednesday that National Guard soldiers will staff undermanned polling sites next week.
Even though Biden has forged a commanding lead in the delegate count, Sanders has refused to end his campaign.