Will coronavirus delay July Democratic presidential convention in Milwaukee?

Democratic convention planners are working on contingency plans as the exploding coronavirus pandemic threatens the July presidential convention in Milwaukee, with some kind of “virtual” gathering or delay growing in possibility.

“As we navigate the unprecedented challenge of responding to the coronavirus, we’re exploring a range of contingency options to ensure we can deliver a successful convention without unnecessary risk to public health,” Katie Peters, the communications director for the convention said in a statement.

“This is a very fluid situation — and the convention is still more than three months away. We are committed to sharing updates with the public in the coming weeks and months as our plans continue to take shape,” she said.

The Democratic convention is scheduled to take place July 13-16 at the Fiserv Forum. Hotels in Rosemont and in Lake County had been contracted to house state delegations, so if there is a change — or if the gathering is trimmed a day — it will have an economic impact in the already hard hit Chicago area.

The potential for postponement is getting more attention in the wake of the decision Monday to push back the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, which had been set to kick off July 24.

The Democrats decided it would be advantageous to hold their nominating convention far ahead of the Republicans. The GOP convention is set for Aug 24-27 at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, N.C.