Democrats Announce Scaled-Back Convention Amid Coronavirus Pandemic

Joe Biden is slated to accept the Democratic nomination for president at the party’s convention in Milwaukee, but the event will be scaled back and delegates are encouraged not to attend in person, the Democratic National Convention Committee said Wednesday.

The committee said that the convention would relocate to the Wisconsin Center, a smaller venue in downtown Milwaukee than the arena the DNC planned on using before, Politico reported.

State delegations should plan to conduct official convention business remotely, the convention committee said in a press release. There may also be a cap of 1,000 people allowed to attend, three sources with knowledge of the plans told Politico.

“Leadership means being able to adapt to any situation,” DNC Chair Tom Perez said in a statement.

“That’s exactly what we’ve done with our convention. Unlike this president, Joe Biden and Democrats are committed to protecting the health and safety of the American people,” Perez said.

The convention is still scheduled to occur in August over four days, though party officials said most meetings would occur virtually and other events would be held in satellite cities. In response to the cap on attendees, the DNCC said that a “process is being developed” to ensure that delegates who do not attend in person will be able to vote for all nominations remotely, The Hill reported.

Jen O’Malley Dillon, Biden’s campaign manager, echoed Perez. “Vice President Biden intends to proudly accept his party’s nomination in Milwaukee and take the next step forward towards making Donald Trump a one-term president,” Dillon said.

“The city of Milwaukee has been an incredible partner and we are committed to highlighting Wisconsin as a key battleground state at our convention this August.”

The scaled-back convention comes as Republicans moved their convention from Charlotte, North Carolina to Jacksonville, Florida in an attempt to hold a full-fledged, in-person event.