2020 Presidential Elections In The Era Of COVID-19.
As usual, the stake is high in the American presidential elections. This time, it is about electing former Vice-President Joseph Biden or reelecting President Donald Trump. But COVID-19 has set a roadblock to November 3 general elections. Under these circumstances, one can't help wonder about the peculiarity of the electoral process.
Election Day is only six months away. Every day that passes, far from drawing us closer, rather distances us, so to speak, further away from the fateful reality that seems lost in the count of time due to the deadly Pandemic. The virus reigns supreme. Thousands of cases of infections and deaths are daily occurrences; the country has become dysfunctional.
So, political campaigning is lingering, not to say nearly impossible for the moment. Republicans and Democrats, friends and foes patiently waiting on a common accord dictated by the events of the time for the country to return to some level of normalcy before they can resume their political campaigns.
But talking of returning to a sense of normalcy in the United States in the midst of this deadly phenomenon is ludicrous. With the danger still present, reopening businesses and lifting all the restrictions under the right conditions looks like the right course of action. Then, both presidential candidates would seize the opportunity to use a timid approach to rekindle their political campaign.
Now Trump and Biden would be campaigning and exchanging political jabs. The year 2020 would remind us once again that the presidential election is well underway. It's a new political atmosphere. Commercials favoring this candidate or against that candidate are blasting on every TV screen.
In short, the presidential campaign is back in full swing under the weight of uncertainty and fear of the unknown. Ah! Campaigning is one thing, but under these circumstances, voting in November is quite another.
Usually, people stand in line to vote. But with the CORONAVIRUS raging in the country, how do we proceed with the election? Several methods can be used to accomplish this goal. For example, people can vote remotely, by using well-protected drop-off locations, mail-in or absentee ballot.
In case no specific voting option deems preferable, the United States can use the South Korean model where President Moon Jae-in had had a successful election despite widespread CORONAVIRUS in that country. One way or another, the U.S. election must take place.
Maybe this is the first time in U.S. history that a presidential election is taking place in such a bizarre manner. We must learn to live with it—and we must make the best of it. Regardless of who wins the U.S. presidency in November, the outcome will be a win-win for both Trump and Biden, if they set aside their political differences to help defeat our common enemy, which is COVID-19.
