7 Ways COVID-19 Has Changed US Politics
2020-08-18
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1The coronavirus has affected a lot of things, including the presidential nomination process in the United States.
2The two leading parties know that they must restructure traditional nominating events because of safety concerns during the pandemic.
3This week Democratic Party delegates will officially choose former Vice President Joe Biden as their candidate for president.
4Yet Biden will never appear in the same room as the delegates.
5The Republican Party plans to nominate U.S. President Donald Trump as its candidate the following week.
6Republican officials say Trump may make his acceptance speech not at a traditional convention, but from the White House.
7Both parties have decided that holding large, indoor gatherings with thousands of delegates during the pandemic would not be a good idea.
8So, all the speeches and other activities are being done online.
9The conventions as grand events "may be a thing of the past," says Karlyn Bowman.
10She is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington, DC.
11Here are seven ways COVID-19 -- the disease caused by the coronavirus -- has changed the U.S. elections this year.
121. The top issue
13For many voters, COVID-19 is the big issue of 2020.
14Trump's reelection campaign began the year with a strong economy and low unemployment rates.
15"He could point to positive economic numbers and peace," said Kyle Kondik of the University of Virginia Center for Politics.
16Yet unemployment has risen to Great Depression levels, and the economy has gotten much smaller since March.
17The United States has over 5.2 million coronavirus cases and 170,000 deaths from COVID-19.
18Many voters disapprove of the way Trump and his administration have reacted to the pandemic.
19Without a strong economy, critics have said the president has struggled to present an argument for reelection.
202. Shrunken conventions
21The usual theatrics of the party conventions will be much smaller this year, but experts say it may not make much of a difference.
22The conventions usually help each presidential candidate in opinion surveys of likely voters, but the rise is most often temporary, Bowman said.
23"I don't think it has much of an impact on the final outcome," she added.
24That is also because many voters have already decided on a candidate, Kondik said.
253. Canceled campaigning
26Big, in-person campaign events with the candidates may increase enthusiasm among party loyalists, rather than undecided voters.
27"Campaigns are going to need to figure out some other means of generating that enthusiasm," said John Hudak, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington.
28Losing in-person campaign events may hurt Trump more than Biden, he added.
29Trump enjoys and seems to get energy from them.
30Not having such events, "I think, not only hurts his ability to generate enthusiasm within his base," Hudak said, "I think it actually affects him personally."
31The Biden campaign may suffer less from canceled campaign events with thousands of supporters, but more from the loss of meeting individual voters face-to-face.
32"He's known as being kind of a warm person and someone who gets close to people, and he just can't do that," Kondik said.
334. Virtual fundraising
34Because political campaigns need a lot of money, the parties have moved to raising donations online.
35Until recently, donors spent a lot of money on pricey dinners with a chance to get close to the presidential candidate.
36Now, donors must settle for online chats with the candidate instead.
37This does not seem to have slowed fundraising, however.
38"I see very little impact whatsoever on fundraising," Bowman said.
39Neither the Democrats nor the Republicans are hurting financially.
40National Public Radio reports that the candidates and their supporters have already raised more than $1.6 billion.
415. Get-out-the-vote drives
42Normally, large numbers of campaign workers go from one house to another to meet people and ask them to vote for their candidate.
43These activities have been cut back.
44Talking to individual voters has a small, but important effect on the number of people who go out to vote.
45Such one-on-one contacts can sometimes decide presidential elections, Kondik said.
466. Voter registration
47Campaigns to register more people to vote have largely ended.
48One study showed that U.S. voter registrations dropped a lot in March and April.
49The study noted that many people register to vote at their local Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), and the pandemic has closed many DMV offices.
507. Vote by mail
51Many state officials think mail-in ballots are a safer way to vote than in-person voting during the pandemic.
52President Trump has often claimed, without evidence, that it will lead to widespread cheating.
53As a result, Republican voters are much less supportive of mail-in voting.
54Mail-in voting could cause confusion on Election Day.
55If a lot of Republicans mark ballots at voting centers and those votes are counted first, "it may look like Donald Trump is leading in the state," when in fact, he might lose the state, said Kondik.
56Counting all the votes could take days or weeks, during which time, Kondik worries, that many people could come to believe fraud was involved.
57I'm Susan Shand.
1The coronavirus has affected a lot of things, including the presidential nomination process in the United States. 2The two leading parties know that they must restructure traditional nominating events because of safety concerns during the pandemic. 3This week Democratic Party delegates will officially choose former Vice President Joe Biden as their candidate for president. Yet Biden will never appear in the same room as the delegates. 4The Republican Party plans to nominate U.S. President Donald Trump as its candidate the following week. Republican officials say Trump may make his acceptance speech not at a traditional convention, but from the White House. 5Both parties have decided that holding large, indoor gatherings with thousands of delegates during the pandemic would not be a good idea. So, all the speeches and other activities are being done online. 6The conventions as grand events "may be a thing of the past," says Karlyn Bowman. She is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington, DC. 7Here are seven ways COVID-19 -- the disease caused by the coronavirus -- has changed the U.S. elections this year. 81. The top issue 9For many voters, COVID-19 is the big issue of 2020. Trump's reelection campaign began the year with a strong economy and low unemployment rates. 10"He could point to positive economic numbers and peace," said Kyle Kondik of the University of Virginia Center for Politics. 11Yet unemployment has risen to Great Depression levels, and the economy has gotten much smaller since March. The United States has over 5.2 million coronavirus cases and 170,000 deaths from COVID-19. Many voters disapprove of the way Trump and his administration have reacted to the pandemic. Without a strong economy, critics have said the president has struggled to present an argument for reelection. 122. Shrunken conventions 13The usual theatrics of the party conventions will be much smaller this year, but experts say it may not make much of a difference. 14The conventions usually help each presidential candidate in opinion surveys of likely voters, but the rise is most often temporary, Bowman said. 15"I don't think it has much of an impact on the final outcome," she added. 16That is also because many voters have already decided on a candidate, Kondik said. 173. Canceled campaigning 18Big, in-person campaign events with the candidates may increase enthusiasm among party loyalists, rather than undecided voters. 19"Campaigns are going to need to figure out some other means of generating that enthusiasm," said John Hudak, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington. 20Losing in-person campaign events may hurt Trump more than Biden, he added. Trump enjoys and seems to get energy from them. 21Not having such events, "I think, not only hurts his ability to generate enthusiasm within his base," Hudak said, "I think it actually affects him personally." 22The Biden campaign may suffer less from canceled campaign events with thousands of supporters, but more from the loss of meeting individual voters face-to-face. 23"He's known as being kind of a warm person and someone who gets close to people, and he just can't do that," Kondik said. 244. Virtual fundraising 25Because political campaigns need a lot of money, the parties have moved to raising donations online. Until recently, donors spent a lot of money on pricey dinners with a chance to get close to the presidential candidate. Now, donors must settle for online chats with the candidate instead. 26This does not seem to have slowed fundraising, however. 27"I see very little impact whatsoever on fundraising," Bowman said. 28Neither the Democrats nor the Republicans are hurting financially. National Public Radio reports that the candidates and their supporters have already raised more than $1.6 billion. 295. Get-out-the-vote drives 30Normally, large numbers of campaign workers go from one house to another to meet people and ask them to vote for their candidate. These activities have been cut back. 31Talking to individual voters has a small, but important effect on the number of people who go out to vote. Such one-on-one contacts can sometimes decide presidential elections, Kondik said. 326. Voter registration 33Campaigns to register more people to vote have largely ended. One study showed that U.S. voter registrations dropped a lot in March and April. The study noted that many people register to vote at their local Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), and the pandemic has closed many DMV offices. 347. Vote by mail 35Many state officials think mail-in ballots are a safer way to vote than in-person voting during the pandemic. President Trump has often claimed, without evidence, that it will lead to widespread cheating. As a result, Republican voters are much less supportive of mail-in voting. 36Mail-in voting could cause confusion on Election Day. 37If a lot of Republicans mark ballots at voting centers and those votes are counted first, "it may look like Donald Trump is leading in the state," when in fact, he might lose the state, said Kondik. 38Counting all the votes could take days or weeks, during which time, Kondik worries, that many people could come to believe fraud was involved. 39I'm Susan Shand. 40VOA's Steve Baragona reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 41_______________________________________________________________ 42Words in This Story 43fellow - n. a prestigious appointment at a university or research facility 44positive - adj. the good side 45impact - n. the effects of something on all things 46enthusiasm - n. to desire to do something with good spirit 47generate - v. to make or to create 48chat - v. to talk to another person about small, pleasant topics 49fundraise - v. to hold parties etc to get people to donate money to political campaigns 50confusion - n. uncertainty