Political candidates scaling back events due to coronavirus – nwitimes.com

Democratic presidential candidates Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders this week both canceled campaign rallies and fundraisers in Chicago and downstate Illinois ahead of the state’s critical primary election Tuesday.

The Biden campaign has switched to “virtual” events using conference calls and live video, in part to comply with a directive by Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, both Democrats, to postpone until May 1 any gathering expected to attract 250 people.

Meanwhile, Sanders got in under the wire on the large gatherings ban with a March 7 rally in Chicago’s Grant Park that his campaign said attracted some 12,500 supporters.

Both the former vice president and the Vermont senator released proposals Thursday to expand testing and provide financial relief to vulnerable groups (Biden), and calling for universal health care and paid sick leave (Sanders).

President Donald Trump doesn’t face any serious opposition in Illinois’ Republican primary.

Due to coronavirus, however, Trump has chosen to cancel several planned large rallies in states the Republican incumbent will need to win in November to secure a second four-year term in the White House.

In Northwest Indiana, Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr., who also is a Democratic candidate for the Region’s U.S. House seat, on Thursday encouraged Hammond events likely to attract more than 250 people to be canceled, in accordance with a similar recommendation issued by Republican Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb.

McDermott said on a local radio program Friday that restriction put a damper on his own campaign’s St. Patrick’s-themed fundraiser, since only 249 people showed up, instead of the usual 800 to 1,000 people.

“I was so depressed. I was just walking around telling people to take the corned beef home,” McDermott said.

At the same time, McDermott said he’s continuing to hold smaller campaign events across the 1st congressional district of Lake, Porter and western LaPorte counties.

He’s also still shaking hands with potential supporters. But McDermott said he’s washing his hands much more than usual.

“I’m not letting it faze me. I’m just going to go hard and that’s all I can do,” McDermott said.

Another congressional candidate, Valparaiso attorney Jim Harper, is taking a different tack in response to coronavirus, canceling his campaign events and canvassing in favor of virtual town halls on Facebook Live at 7 p.m. Sundays.

“Many are now choosing to stay home unless necessary to reduce their risk of contracting the coronavirus,” Harper said. “Everyone should take precautions to keep themselves safe and I will do my best to accommodate that goal.”

Unlike McDermott, Harper also is cutting off handshaking for the time being to reduce the risk of passing on any illness.

“While I eventually want to shake hands with every resident in Northwest Indiana, that will have to be put on hold until the risk of infection is passed,” Harper said.

At the extreme end of the scale, DeMotte congressional candidate Ryan Farrar is calling for all upcoming primary elections, including Indiana’s on May 5, to be canceled or possibly replaced by a mail-in ballot.

“An election during a pandemic feels like a formula for disaster. Public health and safety should always be the top priority,” Farrar said.

“Due to the coronavirus pandemic, our campaign will not be participating in any events or canvassing activities for at least 2 weeks,” he added. “I encourage other candidates to take similar measures.”

Indiana law does not authorize elections to be canceled or postponed.

Though Holcomb’s reelection team said Thursday it is halting all gubernatorial campaign events for the rest of March, and will reassess in April whether to resume campaign activities.

As of Friday, the Indiana Democratic Party and Indiana Republican Party both still are planning to hold their state conventions in June to nominate each party’s candidates for lieutenant governor and attorney general.