Impact2020: April 13, 2020

Welcome to your Impact2020 briefing for Monday, April 13. The Wisconsin elections are still causing problems, but results will finally be reported today. Meanwhile, other states try to learn from the fiasco, and the coronavirus isn’t stopping candidates from mining Florida for campaign cash.

On the Ground

Confusion (still) reigns over Wisconsin

The final results from last week’s chaotic election in Wisconsin will finally start to come in today. But many of the state’s voters never had a chance to cast their ballots.

Daphne Chen, Marcia Robiou, Elizabeth Mulvey, Kacey Cherry and June Cross interviewed “32 would-be voters who said they were forced to choose between going to the polls during a pandemic and not having their votes counted” for a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel story that was published in partnership with the PBS series Frontline and Columbia Journalism Investigations.

“More than 500 people, responding to the Journal Sentinel in an online form, said they requested their ballots in advance but did not receive them in time,” the report reads. “A picture emerged of voters disappointed, angry and confused about how the election played out in a state that has long prided itself on taking voting seriously.”

Of the roughly 1.3 million absentee ballots requested, nearly 200,000 had not been returned and nearly 12,000 were never sent as of Monday, according to the Wisconsin Elections Commission.

Credit: Steve Apps, Wisconsin State Journal via AP

To add to the mess, local election officials still don’t have clear guidance on whether certain absentee ballots should be accepted after the Supreme Court’s last-minute ruling, Riley Vetterkind reports for the Wisconsin State Journal. Clerks are expected to begin reporting the election results at 5 p.m. ET Monday.

Something to keep an eye on for November: The Journal Sentinel’s Craig Gilbert notes that two of the most Republican counties in Wisconsin, Waukesha and Washington, have returned the most absentee ballots per registered voter, even as President Donald Trump and other GOP leaders have criticized mail-in voting.

Learning lessons

Other states are determined not to make the same mistakes as Wisconsin with their upcoming elections.

In Missouri, Gov. Mike Parson already moved the state’s April 7 elections to June 2. Now, the Kansas City Star’s Jason Hancock and Bryan Lowry report that officials are hoping “to use the extra time to make voting less risky, with provisions for social distancing and drive-thru balloting. And lawmakers are being urged to change state’s strict rules on voting absentee.”

But they note that opposition from Parson and other leading Republicans “make it unlikely lawmakers will enact any sweeping changes to state election law.”

Show me the money

The 2020 campaign may be largely on pause right now, but candidates still need to raise money — and lots of it — ahead of November. The Miami Herald’s Alex Daugherty and David Smiley take a look at how this new dynamic is playing out in the swing state of Florida.

“Thursday afternoon, a Joe Biden donor sent out an email invitation to a campaign fundraiser hosted by Florida’s only statewide Democrat, Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried. But instead of a reception for donors to hear from the presumptive Democratic nominee in-person, donors … will get access to a virtual fundraiser where Biden will address his plan for COVID-19. …”

“Later Thursday, shortly before the White House coronavirus task force briefing was set to begin, the Trump campaign sent out an email blast seeking $37 donations, the average donation amount for the Trump campaign so far this cycle. Ten minutes later, the Biden campaign sent out a small-dollar fundraising email of its own.”

Sanders endorses

Bernie Sanders endorsed Biden for president via livestream today. McClatchy’s David Catanese notes that Sanders endorsed Biden before Elizabeth Warren.

You can get the latest 2020 presidential campaign news from David Catanese via text. Impact2020 subscribers, sign up here.

Trail Mix

Election disruption

• Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam has signed measures to repeal the photo ID requirement for voting, to make Election Day a state holiday and to allow no-excuse absentee voting, Andrew Cain writes for the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

• Any New Hampshire voter with concerns about in-person voting due to COVID-19 will be able to request an absentee ballot, Casey McDermott of New Hampshire Public Radio notes.

• Gov. Tony Evers is considering postponing a May special election in Wisconsin’s 7th congressional district, Molly Beck and Laura Schulte report for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

• Maryland’s June 2 primary will happen largely by mail with limited in-person voting, Emily Opilo reports for the Baltimore Sun.

• Absentee ballots Georgia’s June primary won’t start being delivered to voters until the week of April 20 because of a backlog caused by high demand, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Mark Niesse reports.

Battle for Congress

• Rep. Drew Ferguson endorsed Doug Collins over Sen. Kelly Loeffler in the Georgia GOP Senate primary, breaking ranks with Gov. Brian Kemp, Greg Bluestein reports for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

• The GOP super PAC Congressional Leadership Fund, is reserving $1.6 million in TV ad time opposing freshman Democratic Rep. TJ Cox in California’s 21st district, Kate Irby reports for the Fresno Bee.

Governor watch

• At least two Kansas churches defied Gov. Laura Kelly’s order prohibiting mass gatherings of more than 10 people and held in-person Easter Sunday services, Luke Nozicka, Jonathan Shorman and Dion Lefler report for the Wichita Eagle.

• Some critics are raising questions about what they see as inconsistencies in Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s updated state-at-home order, Paul Egan writes for the Detroit Free Press.

• “Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ general counsel called a representative of the Miami Herald’s law firm seeking to quash a public records lawsuit that would force the state to divulge the names of all elder-care facilities that have had a positive test for the coronavirus,” Daniel Chang reports for the Miami Herald. The Herald plans to file the lawsuit anyway, but with a different law firm.

Number of the Day

1,228

That’s the total number of delegates Biden has accumulated after winning Alaska’s Democratic primary over the weekend. Sanders has 918.

You can get the latest 2020 presidential campaign news from David Catanese via text. Impact2020 subscribers, sign up here.

For Planning Purposes

April 13

Wisconsin election results reported

April 17

Wyoming primary (done by mail)

“On behalf of all comedians…”

“... I just want to say thank you,” Colin Jost says in a from-home SNL Weekend Update. He’s calling the general election match-up between Trump and Biden “comedy gold.”

LISTEN

Catch up on the latest episode of McClatchy’s political podcast Beyond the Bubble. Download it on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts. Or, if you only have 5 minutes, watch this clip.

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This story was originally published April 13, 2020 at 12:44 PM.