Eight professors at Syracuse University have joined hundreds of political scientists in signing a petition urging Congress to ensure the coronavirus pandemic does not affect the November elections. 

The petition, which has over 800 signatures from professors across the country, calls on Congress to enact legislation to guarantee the November general elections remain free and fair if public health concerns prevent voters from going to polling booths.  

“We do not know how long the current state of emergency will last,” the petition said. “But we can see how it is currently disrupting primaries across the country, causing millions of citizens to be afraid to venture out of their homes, and even causing some states to postpone primary elections.”

Six states have postponed their presidential primaries to at least April in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The novel coronavirus causes COVID-19, a respiratory disease that has infected at least 272,000 and killed over 11,000 worldwide. There have been over 19,000 cases in the U.S. 

Twenty-three states, the District of Columbia and various other U.S. territories have yet to hold their primaries for the November elections. Several are scheduled for the next few months.  

The Brennan Center for Justice, a non-partisan policy and law institute, has suggested several measures that could ensure the elections remain accessible and fair, the petition reads. The signatories cite the expansion of early voting as a possible solution from the center. 

There has never been a missed election in the history of the United States, the petition states. 

Not only is the virus causing a public health crisis as well as major economic suffering, but it also poses a political crisis by endangering democratic elections, it said. 

“We have time to prepare, now, to ensure that these elections can take place, fairly, under any circumstances,” the petition states.

Published on March 21, 2020 at 12:21 am

Contact Maggie: mehicks@syr.edu | @maggie_hickss