Does Red America See A Different Pandemic?

Plus: New York postponed its primary [View this email in your browser]( [Politics Brief from WNYC + Gothamist] [Keep friends and family informed. Forward the Politics Brief.]( New York Won't Vote For Nearly Three Months By [James Ramsay]( [Gov. Andrew Cuomo sits in the Javits Center during a press conference last Friday] Darren McGee/Gov's Office via AP It's official: New York is moving its Democratic presidential primary from April 28th to June 23rd, to coincide with the primaries for congressional and state-level races. (New York had [already canceled the Republican primary]( since President Trump was the only candidate who qualified to appear on the ballot.) "I don’t think it’s wise to be bringing a lot of people to one location to vote, a lot of people touching one doorknob, a lot of people touching one pen," Gov. Andrew Cuomo said over the weekend. Additionally, the special election for Queens borough president [has been moved]( to June 23rd, with early voting to begin on June 13th. Mayor Bill de Blasio had previously postponed the election — which was originally scheduled for March 24th — but hadn't set a new date. Along with New York, Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island were initially set to hold April 28th presidential primaries. But those states have all postponed their elections for June 2nd — the same day New Jersey plans to vote. By pushing its primary so far back (New York and Kentucky will be the final states to vote), New York is likely forfeiting its chance to have any last-minute sway in the Democratic contest. Last week, before the primary date had changed, the Bernie Sanders campaign was [ramping up phone-banking efforts]( with an eye towards New York as the senator's last stand. Now, New York could also see its total delegate count (274) lowered at the party's July 13th convention. The Democratic National Committee [issued a rule]( last year that reduces the delegate figures for any state holding its primary after June 9th. Since the pandemic hit, the DNC has urged states to find other ways to hold elections on schedule rather than delaying primaries. The party [hasn't said how (if at all) it'll penalize New York]( in this case. The [New York Times]( reported that some New York Democrats privately hoped the state could cancel its presidential primary altogether if Sanders drops out. But these postponements will at least give local election boards around the state nearly three months to make plans for keeping voters safe. Cuomo has said he expects coronavirus cases [to peak in mid-April](. Sanders Is Now 'Campaigning Against The Virus' Though Bernie Sanders hasn't dropped out of the Democratic primary race, he has stopped raising money for his candidacy. "All we're raising for is groups who are doing front-line work to help vulnerable communities," said Sanders' campaign manager, Faiz Shakir. "We've raised over $3 million." As a sitting senator, Sanders already has a policymaking role and a platform for speaking out about the virus. A speech he gave from the Senate floor, in which he criticized some Republicans for suggesting the $2 trillion relief package would unfairly benefit low-income workers, [went viral last week](. But some believe he can have an even greater effect on the coronavirus response by technically remaining a presidential candidate. "He's old enough that I don't think anyone expects him to make another run for the presidency," said Barry Burden, an elections expert at the University of Wisconsin. "He may be in his last term in the Senate or near it. Right now, he still has something of a national stage. Once he leaves the campaign, that will be gone." Sanders said last week that he's still interested in an April debate, though Biden [told CNN]( that he thinks they've "had enough debates." According to the latest [FiveThirtyEight]( projections, Sanders has a 0.1% chance of winning the Democratic nomination. ([NPR]( Two South Jersey Democratic Committees Are Delaying Elections. Progressives Are Furious. In New Jersey politics, Democratic and Republican county committee members are important, since they get to vote on party bosses and often have a say in which candidates get official party endorsements. This June, some South Jersey progressives had been aiming to get elected to local Democratic committees in order to wrest power away from the region's controversial party boss, [George Norcross](. But the Democratic organizations in Atlantic and Cape May counties have now postponed those committee elections for at least a year, citing coronavirus concerns. So a pair of progressive groups — and two of the candidates who intended to run — are suing to try and get the elections back on for June 2nd. "Party bosses allied with George Norcross are trying to use this time of crisis to stay in power by eviscerating our most fundamental right — the right to vote," said the New Jersey Working Families Alliance, which is one of the plaintiffs. "It’s unconscionable that the special interests controlling South Jersey’s Democratic Party would use a global pandemic to try to frustrate the will of the voters and to unilaterally extend their own terms." As for the rest of the state's June 2nd elections, which include presidential and congressional primaries, Gov. Phil Murphy hasn't said yet how they'll be conducted, but some state officials suspect it'll all be done with mail-in ballots. ([Politico]( Does Red America See A Different Pandemic? [an illustration of a coronavirus-like sun setting behind the White House] Illustration by Golden Cosmos President Trump's approval rating is [averaging over 47%]( — which is near his all-time high — and it's not because urban Democrats are rallying around their president during a time of crisis. "Number one, views about Donald Trump are remarkably fixed, and immune to almost any kind of external change or shock," explains The New Yorker's Susan Glasser, adding that 40% of Americans seem to support him no matter what. Moreover, the geographic lines that divide our politics are also matching up with where the coronavirus is currently worse. And so far, it's been easier on rural areas that are already inclined towards liking Trump. "You have the big cities that are predominantly Democratic on the two coasts, being hit first and hardest by this," Glasser adds. "And Trump seems to be exacerbating those divisions with how he's talking about this. Some of his rhetoric about wanting to return to normalcy and how it's not really that big of a deal are playing almost overtly to small, less populated states in the middle of the country." ("You look at Nebraska, you look at Idaho, you look at Iowa," [Trump said last week](. "You look at many — I could name many countries that are handling it very, very well and that are not affected to the same extent, or, frankly, not even nearly to the extent of New York.") But what will it mean politically for Trump as the virus continues to spread? And should Democratic lawmakers and presidential candidates be critiquing Trump's response, or sitting back and letting him potentially sabotage his own reelection chances? [Hear Glasser's full take on the New Yorker's Politics and More podcast](. [the logo for Brian Lehrer's daily politics podcast]( AOC On COVID-19 And Relief For Tenants Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez talks about the federal relief package, as well as rent and mortgage relief, and what social distancing means for the census. Support WNYC + Gothamist Make a donation to support local, independent journalism. Your contributions are our largest source of funding and pays for essential election coverage and more. [Donate]( Copyright © 2020 New York Public Radio, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: New York Public Radio 160 Varick Street New York, NY 10013 [unsubscribe]( [update preferences]( [privacy policy](