Louisiana Postpones April 4 Presidential Primary
By 270toWin Staff
March 13, 2020
Louisiana's presidential primary will no longer take place on April 4, as concerns over the coronavirus have led the state to delay it to a later date. It is the first state to change a primary election date due to the pandemic.
The primary has been rescheduled for June 20. That is after each party's approved window for holding primaries. It is possible this could impact the number of delegates Louisiana has at the conventions this summer, although that seems unlikely given the situation.
The postponement shouldn't have a significant practical impact on the race. On the GOP side, President Trump is likely to clinch the Republican nomination this Tuesday. That day's primaries in Illinois, Florida and Ohio should give him well over the 172 delegates he needs to reach the required 1,276. On the Democratic side, Joe Biden is likely to significantly expand his delegate lead on Tuesday and may well be the presumptive nominee by the end of the month.
Louisiana doesn't conduct a primary for congressional offices. Instead, all candidates from all parties appear on the ballot November 3. There is a runoff on December 5 for those elections where no candidate gets a majority of the vote.
