Nevada’s state political conventions still on schedule

Nevada’s two major political parties are holding steady on their plans to host dozens of planned county conventions in March and April and statewide gatherings in May as fears of COVID-19 exposure grow.

“There are no plans to reschedule the Nevada Republican Party’s state convention in May, but we will weigh our options should public health concerns arise over the coming months,” said state Republican Party Chairman Michael McDonald.

It’s unclear exactly what those options may be.

Republicans decided to forgo the caucus in favor of an endorsement of President Donald Trump, but state law still requires a number of precinct, county and state-level meetings. The precinct-level gatherings are currently wrapping up.

Cancellation may not be an option, but some sort of remote or telephonic convention may be possible.

Nevada State Democratic Party spokeswoman Molly Forgey said there were currently no plans to cancel the state convention, and the party will follow the guidance of the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services on best practices.

Concerns over novel coronavirus have caused the closure of various trade shows, conventions and other gatherings throughout the Las Vegas area in recent weeks.

The county Republican conventions, scheduled throughout the state for March 28, appear to be continuing on as planned, according to recent social media and website postings. The Clark and Washoe county parties did not respond to a request for comment.

The Democratic county conventions, planned for April 18, also seem to be going forward without any major changes. Leaders of the Washoe and Clark county parties could not be reached for comment.

Both the state and county conventions also serve as election venues for their parties’ respective central committees. They may also adopt platforms or take other various actions.

Tens of thousands of county delegates will attend the conventions, which select delegates for the state conventions in May. Republicans are binding their delegates to Trump, but more than 14,000 county delegates were allocated to various Democratic candidates in last month’s caucuses.

Eventually, 36 pledged delegates on the Democratic side and 25 on the Republican will emerge from the state conventions and attend the national conventions in July in Milwaukee for Democrats and August in Charlotte, North Carolina for Republicans.

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