Democratic National Convention postponed in response to coronavirus
CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA - FEBRUARY 25: Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) (L) speaks as former Vice President Joe Biden reacts during the Democratic presidential primary debate at the Charleston Gaillard Center on Februar
WASHINGTON - The Democratic National Committee is delaying its presidential nominating convention until the week of Aug. 17 after prospective nominee Joe Biden said he didn’t think it would be possible to hold a normal convention in mid-July because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Convention CEO Joe Solmonese confirmed the decision in a statement Thursday.
“In our current climate of uncertainty, we believe the smartest approach is to take additional time to monitor how this situation unfolds so we can best position our party for a safe and successful convention,” Solmonese said.
Biden on Wednesday night told NBC late-night commedian Jimmy Fallon that he doubted “whether the Democratic convention is going to be able to be held” on its original July 13-16 schedule in Milwaukee.
RELATED: Biden, Trump primary election wins certified
“I think it’s going to have move into August,” Biden said. “You just have to be prepared for the alternative, and the alternative — we don’t know what it’s going to be.”
Those comments are the furthest Biden had gone in predicting a delay for the convention, which would mark the start of the general election campaign. The coronavirus pandemic is forcing Democrats and Republicans to take a close look at whether they’ll be able to move forward as planned with their summer conventions. Republicans plan to gather Aug. 24-27 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
RELATED: People behind in child support payments may not qualify for coronavirus stimulus check
In an interview earlier this week with MSNBC, Biden said it’s “hard to envision” a normal convention on that schedule. But the former vice president also noted on “The 11th Hour with Brian Williams” that Democrats “have more time” to figure things out as party officials consider contingencies that could range from an outright delay to making parts of the proceedings virtual so that not as many people attend.