Some Florida polling places couldn't open as poll workers didn't arrive because of fears over the potentially deadly virus. The Palm Beach County elections department said many workers failed to show up in at least five locations. The county had 800 volunteers back out as of Monday, with just 100 new volunteers offering to take their place. (Photo by EVA MARIE UZCATEGUI/AFP via Getty Images)
Only three of the four scheduled primaries will take place today, and each of those states has confirmed multiple cases of the novel coronavirus.
Millions of voters in Arizona, Florida, and Illinois have already cast ballots for the 441 Democratic pledged delegates up for grabs in today and those who haven't are expected to head to the polls. Today's vote is the first held as in the nation since the coronavirus changed life in the U.S. There is concern about turnout, particularly after the Trump Administration yesterday advised avoiding groups of more than 10 people.
According to the Associated Press, the Palm Beach County elections department in Florida said workers were no shows in at least five polling sites after 800 volunteers had already backed out on Monday due to virus fears.
Ohio, originally scheduled to vote today, called off its primary late last night after the health director declared an emergency. A judge had denied a last-minute request to delay the primary, but Republican Gov. Mike DeWine later said the Health Department Director Amy Acton could "order the polls closed as a health emergency," which she inevitably did.
The 12 hours of back and forth in Ohio that led, finally, to a delay in voting, was so chaotic a local paper reminded voters that "Today is NOT really Election Day."
In Illinois, Gov. J.B. Pritzker told reporters the Illinois primary would move forward as planned with extra precautions in place to clean machines and offer hand sanitizers. Illinois had seen increased early voting numbers in Chicago and Cook County.
Government officials are imploring citizens to take advice from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention seriously (which advised canceling events of more than 50 people) but also encouraging voters to head to the polls — safely.
Votes today are moving forward, but with a few changes. To encourage safe voting, polling sites in Florida, Illinois, and Arizona senior centers had been moved to separate at-risk elderly voters from the general population. Arizona recommended that voters cast mail ballots or drop off a vote-by-mail ballot at polling centers and Illinois will allow all nursing home residents in Chicago and Cook County to vote-by-mail.
Ohio is the fourth state to move its primary, joining Louisiana, Kentucky, and Georgia in postponing primaries.
Arizona is one of a few states believed to be competitive in the general election. Former Vice President Joe Biden and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders had campaigned there before the coronavirus pandemic hit the U.S., and each candidate's response to the outbreak could potentially help voters see how they would respond to a crisis. Biden is ahead of Sanders in polling in all three states.
The U.S. cannabis industry is on track to hit almost $25 billion in sales, according to New Frontier Data. Vivien Azer, managing director and senior research analyst at Cowen, and Russell Stanley, managing director and equity research at Beacon Securities Limited, join Cheddar News to give their predictions for the budding industry in 2022.
Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore. 3rd District), the co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, joined Cheddar's "Cannabiz" to discuss the state of marijuana legalization on the federal level as more states continue to greenlight medical and adult use. He stated that there couldn't be a better time to revise the old policies on marijuana with more than 90 percent of Americans, including a majority of Republicans, on board. "This tidal wave of support continues. There were five states that approved in the last general election, and I think, rather than one single event, it is this momentum and the demonstration of broad public support that is making the difference," Blumenauer said.
Megan Horneman, Director of Portfolio Strategy at Verdence Capital Advisors, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where she says there is some profit-taking ahead of the upcoming Fed meeting, and elaborates on some of the topics investors will be watching for more closely this week.
Rachel Bachman, senior sports reporter at the Wall Street Journal, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where she explains how U.S. athletes have been inserted into the middle of a political debate after the country declared a diplomatic boycott of the upcoming Olympic Games in Beijing.
Lance Ippolito, Head Trader at the Future Of Wealth, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell where he discusses the factors that have contributed to the recent slide of major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether.
President Biden spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin for the fourth time this year. Biden and Putin spoke for two hours about the massing of Russian troops and materials near the Russian border with Ukraine. Various outlets have reported that the U.S. has intelligence that Russia could be planning an invasion of Ukraine in the next few months. Both countries said the call was productive, but the situation remains tense.
Hagar Chemali, foreign policy expert and host of "Oh My World!" on YouTube, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss.
A recent Wall Street Journal poll indicated that Hispanic voters are up for grabs for the upcoming midterm elections, with 41 percent of respondents saying they would vote for Democrats and 44 percent for Republicans. Bryanta "Bre" Maxwell, a Democratic Strategist, former political director for Jaime Harrison's senate campaign, and principal and CEO of Indigo Consulting, LLC, joined Cheddar to break down the numbers and to dive into what this specific electorate is looking for as the balance of power in Congress hangs in the balance in 2022.
