Coronavirus response includes $400 million in election assistance. Will it be enough?
A sweeping federal spending package responding to the new coronavirus pandemic will include millions to help states administer elections, but some fear it will not be enough to prevent chaos in November.
The enormous spending bill that Senate leaders of both parties said early Wednesday morning they had agreed on includes $400 million in election assistance, according to a summary and partial bill text released by the Senate Appropriations Committee. That figure is a fraction, however, of the $2 billion the Brennan Center for Justice estimated is necessary for states to prepare for a surge of voters casting ballots by mail and to ensure safe in-person voting.
Ben Hovland, the chairman of the Election Assistance Commission, said on Tuesday before a deal on the package was announced that it is difficult to determine how much federal assistance is necessary to prepare states for November.
“From what I’ve been hearing from state and local election officials around the country, I think the number is closer to $2 billion,” he added.
Election officials are already scrambling to adjust to the pandemic, postponing primaries and stressing absentee voting options so voters can avoid polling places. To curb the spread of the virus, public health officials have recommended that gatherings not exceed 10 people.
https://www.rollcall.com/2020/03/25/coronavirus-response-includes-400-million-in-election-assistance-will-it-be-enough/