New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo Moves State's Presidential Primary To Late June

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced Saturday he is pushing back the state’s presidential primary due to concerns over the coronavirus.

The primary, which was set to happen on April 28, will now be held on June 23.

“I don’t think it’s wise to be bringing a lot of people to one location to vote,” Cuomo said at a news conference. “A lot of people touching one door knob, a lot of people touching one pen, whatever you call it ― device on the ballots. So, we are going to delay that, and link it to an election that was previously scheduled on June 23.”

The change of date could prove to be an issue, as ABC News points out:

One potential problem for New York, however is that, June 23 is after June 9, the Democratic National Committee cutoff date for states to hold nominating contests. States that move outside the window could face a penalty of up to a 50% reduction in delegates.

New York has the second-most delegates of any state with 274. Louisiana and Kentucky have also moved their elections outside the approved window.

More than 50,000 people have COVID-19 in New York, Cuomo said. And in just one day, the death toll rose by 134 people in the state. The Javits Convention Center in New York City has been converted into a disaster hospital, with 250 beds lined up and more than 300 Federal Emergency Management Agency workers on hand.