Pandemic and Elections News Flash

As part of our effort to provide you with the most up-to-date, accurate information, we've compiled some of the most pressing updates below. Please reach out to us if you have any questions or if we can be of any further assistance.

Schumer declares Democratic majority in the Senate [via ] Senate Minority Leader (D-N.Y.) declared on Wednesday that Democrats have gained control of the Senate, calling it a "brand new day" in Washington. The state of play: The AP projected that Rev. has defeated Sen. (R). Democrat Jon Ossoff is currently leading in the race against former Sen. (R), but the contest is still too close to call. Why it matters: A 50-50 Senate would give Vice President-elect the tie-breaking vote after Jan. 20. Democratic control of the Senate will decide the fate of Biden's presidency, from whether he gets his Cabinet nominees to whether progressives get their tax hikes and public spending. With Senate control at stake, Ossoff maintains lead as counting resumes [via NYT] With control of the Senate hanging in the balance, and the contest still too close to call, the Democratic candidate Jon Ossoff widened his lead over his Republican challenger, David Perdue, to more than 17,000 votes. After trading leads deep into Tuesday evening, Mr. Ossoff remained ahead of Mr. Perdue by just 0.4 percent on Wednesday — within the range that could trigger a recount. Still, Mr. Ossoff, in a video message posted Wednesday morning, declared victory. (Major networks have not yet called the race.) Biden renews call for new COVID-19 legislation after elections [via ] President-elect on Wednesday renewed calls for new coronavirus relief legislation at the start of his administration following the Georgia Senate runoff races Tuesday. Biden has long called the recently-passed $900 billion relief measure a "down payment" on a future, broader package, but with Sen.-elect Raphael Warnock's (D-Ga.) victory in one Georgia Senate runoff and Democrat Jon Ossoff's lead in a second, the president-elect indicated he will press hard for a new deal. "I have long said that the bipartisan COVID-19 relief bill passed in December was just a down payment. We need urgent action on what comes next, because the COVID-19 crisis hits red states and blue states alike." NYC Issues ‘Urgent' Warning for People 75+; Cuomo Warns of UK Covid Variant [via NBC NY] New York City health officials issued a new and heightened warning Wednesday to people age 75 and up, citing concerning case growth rates and more disturbing numbers on hospitalizations and deaths in the last 30 days. Cuomo said Wednesday that the U.K. Covid variant could "apparently overtake" the earlier strain in a matter of weeks. The rapid spread alone could overburden hospitals. No evidence indicates it is deadlier or causes worse infection, but it appears to be at least 50 percent more contagious. NY by the numbers: In NYC, 279 new hospitalizations, 3,845 new cases and a 9.25% positivity rate (7-day avg.). Statewide, hospitalizations are at 8,665, of the 197,816 tests reported yesterday, 16,648 were positive (8.41% of total). There were 161 fatalities. U.S. sets COVID-19 hospitalization record as states ramp up vaccination efforts [via Reuters] More Americans were hospitalized with COVID-19 on Wednesday than at any time since the pandemic began, as coronavirus infections and deaths soared across much of the United States and a historic vaccination effort lagged. U.S. COVID-19 hospitalizations reached a record 130,834 late on Tuesday, while 3,684 reported fatalities was the second-highest single-day death toll of the pandemic. The lack of a federal blueprint for the crucial final step of getting the vaccines into tens of millions of arms has left officials in charge of the monumental effort, creating a patchwork of different plans across U.S. states. Cuomo asks Border Patrol to require negative tests from international travelers [via AM NY] As fears of the mutated COVID-19 virus mounting in other countries mount, and the Tuesday discovery of the UK variant in Saratoga, Governor Andrew Cuomo is requesting Customs and Border Patrol make efforts to prevent illness from abroad from entering New York through its airports. One of the concerns voiced by the governor in Wednesday’s press conference was that of a more dangerous version of the virus, apart from the 117 variant from the UK, entering the country and pushing the pharmaceutical industry back to the drawing board on vaccination developments. Fight Over Closing Schools Reignites as N.Y.C. Positive Rate Tops 9% [via NYT] New York City’s rising virus numbers are once again forcing high-stakes decisions about whether to keep schools open, leaving students, parents and educators with newfound uncertainty. Those concerns have intensified in recent days, as the United Federation of Teachers warned the city that it believed all schools should close if the positivity rate reached a certain threshold. But in a repeat of a battle that has played out frequently over the few months, the mayor’s office has said it is determined to keep schools open. Gov. Cuomo appeared to support Mayor Bill de Blasio in his desire to keep schools open, announcing on Monday that the state would instead leave the decision to local leaders. Biden to tap Merrick Garland for attorney general [via ] Joe Biden has selected Judge Merrick Garland to serve as his attorney general, according to two people with knowledge of the decision. Biden selected Garland over former Sen. Doug Jones (D-AL) and former deputy attorney general Sally Yates, choosing to elevate the chief judge of the United States Court of Appeals in D.C. to run the Justice Department. In 2016, President nominated Garland to serve on the Supreme Court, but his nomination languished in the GOP-controlled Senate at the end of the former president’s term. In recent weeks, Garland has been recusing himself from cases involving the federal government, fueling speculation that he was a leading candidate for the job. Trump falsely tells thousands of protesters: ‘We won this election’ [via WaPo] Thousands of President Trump’s supporters are in Washington for rallies Wednesday to falsely assert that the presidential election was stolen from him. Many in attendance see the demonstrations as a last stand for Trump on the same day that Congress votes to certify that President-elect Joe Biden won the election. A permit issued by the National Park Service this week indicates that organizers expect about 30,000 people to attend. Trump addressed the rally on the Ellipse, telling his fans what they wanted to hear: That despite all evidence, he won the election. “We will never give up. We will never concede. It doesn’t happen. You don’t concede when there’s theft involved,” Trump said, falsely claiming that Biden’s victory was based on fraudulent vote counts. “We won this election, and we won it by a landslide. This was not a close election. Trump’s Allies Will Make Last Stand in Congress [via NYT] Congress anxiously prepared for a marathon session on Wednesday to formalize President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s Electoral College victory, after Republican loyalists to President Trump confirmed they would object to the results of at least three battleground states the Democrat won. Senators of Texas and of Alabama planned to object to the certification of Arizona’s electors; Senator Kelly Loeffler of Georgia intended to object to those from her state; and Senator of Missouri planned to object to Pennsylvania’s slate, according to people familiar with their plans. Their challenges were all but certain to fail amid bipartisan opposition. But their decision to join House Republicans in seeking to overturn the election ensured that Congress would be thrust into a caustic debate over the results and Mr. Trump’s repeatedly debunked claims of widespread fraud and irregularities that could last nine hours or more.

​ ​ ​ ​