(WBEN) - Assemblymember Monica Wallace has called for New York to postpone its presidential primary - and the NY-27 special election to fill the Congressional seat vacated by Chris Collins.
Text of the release from Wallace's office as follows:
"We are facing an unprecedented worldwide pandemic," said Assemblymember Wallace. "In the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, public health experts are pleading with New Yorkers to stay home, engage in social distancing and avoid gathering in public spaces. Thousands of lives are at stake. At this moment, I think the need to protect the public requires us to postpone scheduled elections until we can better ensure the safety of the community at large."The state's presidential primary is scheduled to occur on April 28, but all other federal, state, and local primaries in New York are scheduled to occur on June 23, 2020. Wallace seeks to have the April 28th presidential primary moved to June 23rd, thereby setting one date on which all primary elections would occur in New York this year. She is also calling for the cancellation of the special election to fill the congressional seat formerly held by U.S. Rep. Chris Collins, asserting that the need to fill the seat temporarily, until the general election in November, is far outweighed by the need to prevent further spread of the virus. The New York 27th Congressional District partially encompasses Wallace's Assembly district, and Wallace herself resides in NY27.New York currently has the largest outbreak of positive COVID-19 cases in the nation, over seven times more than any other state as of Tuesday morning. The number of cases is expected to grow exponentially over the next few weeks. The number of cases in New York is expected to peak in several weeks, near the end of April or early May.Without social distancing measures, the COVID-19 coronavirus could infect up to 214 million Americans, overwhelm the nation's health care system, and cause up to 1.7 million deaths, according to the U.S. Center for Disease Control. Senior citizens and individuals with compromised immune systems face the highest risk of severe complications from COVID-19, which could result in hospitalization or death."It is especially important that we protect our seniors and those with compromised immune systems," said Wallace. "We must postpone the April 28t h election to prevent further spread of this disease. It is irresponsible to hold an election right when health experts are warning that New Yorkers will be feeling the greatest impacts of this disease."Wallace also expressed concern that many of the polling places are located in apartment buildings and living facilities with a high senior population. "It makes no sense to invite the general public into high density senior living facilities at this moment in time," said Wallace.
The primary and special election are still on for April 28th as of now.
