Nevada State Democratic Party cancels county conventions

The Nevada State Democratic Party has canceled the county conventions set to take place in April over fears of the spread of COVID-19, Chair William McCurdy II announced Thursday afternoon.

“Due to concerns regarding the spread of COVID-19, the Nevada State Democratic Party is taking every precaution possible as we begin preparations for our county and state conventions,” McCurdy said in a statement. “For this reason, we are canceling our county conventions scheduled to take place on April 18. We will provide county chairs with additional guidance regarding conducting the necessary business such as electing delegates to the state convention.”

More than 14,000 delegates were set to participate in the Democratic county conventions. That number will eventually factor down into 36 pledged delegates to the Democratic National Convention.

The state party did not release any further information on how state delegates will be selected without county conventions.

The party told the Review-Journal in a statement Tuesday that it planned to go on with its state convention on May 30 and follow guidance from the Department of Health and Human Services.

Many conventions and sporting events in the Las Vegas area have already been canceled. Several Western states have banned public gatherings for fear of coronavirus spread, but Nevada has not yet given such an order.

The state’s many Democratic clubs have also begun to cancel all in-person meetings this month.

On Thursday evening, Nevada Republican Party Chair Michael McDonald also called on county Republican parties to cancel their conventions, which are scheduled for March 28.

McDonald said he was following President Donald Trump’s lead. He added the local GOP is prepared to cancel its state convention in May if conditions do not improve.

Contact Rory Appleton at RAppleton@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0276. Follow @RoryDoesPhonics on Twitter.