Voting During a Pandemic: Prioritize People Over Partisan Politics

By insisting that Wisconsin鈥檚 primary election proceed in-person, Republicans inadvertently showed why early voting and mail-in ballots should be a priority.

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By Democracy Now!

< 1 MIN READ

Apr 9, 2020

Lines stretching city blocks, hours-long waits, and polling officials in hazmat suits. That鈥檚 the scene voters in Wisconsin encountered as they braved the polls Tuesday amid the coronavirus pandemic. Despite growing outcry about the risks to public health and safety that in-person voting would pose, on Monday the state Supreme Court blocked Democratic Governor Tony Evers鈥檚 ruling to delay the election until June. At least 92 people in Wisconsin have died from exposure to COVID-19. In Milwaukee鈥攖he most diverse city in Wisconsin鈥攖he number of polling stations went from 180 to five. We speak with Jesse Wegman, longtime journalist and member of The New York Times editorial board.

This article was originally published on It has been published here with permission. You can read the full transcript at the link above.