Connecticut’s Democratic presidential primary is the sixth to be postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“In coordination with other states and our Secretary of the State, and in an effort to carry out Democracy while keeping public health a top priority, I have decided to move our presidential primary to June 2nd,” Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont, a Democrat, said in a tweet on Thursday. The state’s primary was originally scheduled for April 28.
The increasing delays mean that Joe Biden’s claim to the presumptive nominee status could come weeks later than it otherwise would have, assuming Biden’s last remaining rival, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, stays in the race.
Delays of primaries that were supposed to hold contests by the end of April — Connecticut, Ohio, Georgia, Louisiana, and Maryland — account for 451 pledged delegates.
Biden has 1,181 pledged delegates so far, according to the Associated Press, and 66 delegates from past contests have yet to be allocated as states finalize final election results. He needs 810 more delegates to reach the threshold of 1,991 delegates that will earn him the Democratic presidential nomination on the first Democratic National Convention ballot.
Sanders has 885 delegates, and it is highly improbable that he will overtake Biden’s large lead.
Several other states are weighing delaying their primaries. Pennsylvania and New York, which account for 186 and 274 delegates, have a primary scheduled for April 28. Puerto Rico has asked its legislature to delay its March 29 primary, which accounts for 51 delegates.
