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Sanders suspends presidential campaign, Biden is presumptive Democratic nominee

• Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.) suspended his presidential campaign. He said in a video statement to supporters, “I wish I could give you better news, but I think you know the truth. We are now some 300 delegates behind Vice President Biden and the path toward victory is virtually impossible.”
   
• Biden has won an estimated 1,217 Democratic pledged delegates to Sanders’ 914. With a plurality of pledged delegates, Biden has become the presumptive Democratic nominee. To officially win the nomination, a candidate needs to secure 1,991 pledged delegates.
   
• Sanders said, “I congratulate Joe Biden, a very decent man, who I will work with to move our progressive ideas forward. On a practical note, let me also say this, I will stay on the ballot in all remaining states and continue to gather delegates.”
   
• Through these delegates, Sanders said he would “exert significant influence” over the party platform at the Democratic National Convention.
   
• Originally scheduled to take place in July, the convention will be held the week of August 17 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The event was postponed in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Sixth member of Congress tests positive for coronavirus

• Rep. Neal Dunn (R-FL) announced on April 9 that he tested positive for COVID-19, becoming the sixth member of Congress to test positive for the novel coronavirus. Dunn said he went to the emergency room earlier in the week after falling ill.
  • Dunn has represented Florida’s 2nd Congressional District since 2017.
     
• Other members of Congress to test positive for the coronavirus include Joe Cunningham (D-S.C.), Mike Kelly (R-Pa.), Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Ben McAdams (D-Utah), Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fl.). 
   
• Ballotpedia is tracking elected officials, candidates, and government officials who have been diagnosed with COVID-19 or are in quarantine to prevent transmission of COVID-19 due to coronavirus infection. Read more here.

Wisconsin holds presidential preference primaries

• Wisconsin held Democratic and Republican presidential primaries as originally scheduled on Tuesday after the Wisconsin Supreme Court enjoined Gov. Tony Evers’ executive order postponing in-person voting from April 7 to June 9. 
   
• The U.S. Supreme Court also voted to stay a federal district court order that had extended the absentee voting deadline. As a result, voters returning absentee ballots must have them postmarked by April 7 and election officials must receive them by April 13 to be counted. Results will not be reported until April 13, the receipt deadline for absentee ballots.

McEnany to replace Grisham as White House press secretary

• On April 7, Melania Trump announced that White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham is leaving her role to become the first lady’s chief of staff. 
   
• Grisham had previously served as a spokesperson to Melania Trump while in the press secretary position. She replaced Sarah Huckabee Sanders as press secretary in June 2019.
   
• Pres. Donald Trump (R) named former Republican National Committee spokesperson Kayleigh McEnany as Grisham’s replacement that same day. McEnany is the national press secretary for Trump’s 2020 presidential re-election campaign and a former political commentator for CNN.
   
• McEnany is the fourth press secretary in Pres. Trump’s presidential administration. She is preceded by Grisham, Sanders, and Sean Spicer.

Georgia postpones statewide primary to June 9

• Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) announced the postponement of Georgia's statewide and presidential primary elections to June 9. The primary runoff has been postponed to August 11. The state had previously postponed its presidential primary to May 19, the original date of its statewide primary. 
   
• The following 19 states have postponed federal elections in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic:
  • Alabama: Primary runoff postponed to July 14.
  • Connecticut: Presidential preference primary postponed to June 2.
  • Delaware: Presidential preference primary postponed to June 2.
  • Georgia: Statewide and presidential preference primaries postponed to June 9; primary runoff postponed to August 11.
  • Indiana: Primary postponed to June 2.
  • Kentucky: Primary postponed to June 23.
  • Louisiana: Presidential preference primary postponed to June 20.
  • Maryland: Primary postponed to June 2.
  • Mississippi: Republican primary runoff for the state's 2nd Congressional District postponed to June 23.
  • New Jersey: Primary postponed to July 7.
  • New York: Presidential preference primary postponed to June 23; special election for the 27th Congressional District postponed to June 23.
  • North Carolina: Republican primary runoff for North Carolina's 11th Congressional District postponed to June 23.
  • Ohio: Absentee voting in the state's primary extended to April 27; final date for in-person voting, restricted to individuals with disabilities and those without home mailing addresses, set for April 28.
  • Pennsylvania: Primary postponed to June 2.
  • Puerto Rico: Democratic presidential preference primary postponed to an unspecified future date.
  • Rhode Island: Presidential preference primary postponed to June 2.
  • Texas: Primary runoff postponed to July 14.
  • Virginia: Primary postponed to June 23.
  • West Virginia: Primary postponed to June 9.

SCOTUS releases opinions on employment discrimination, criteria for police searches

• On April 6, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) issued rulings in two cases argued during its October term 2019-2020: Babb v. Wilkie and Kansas v. Glover.
   
• The case Babb v. Wilkie came on a writ of certiorari to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit and was argued before SCOTUS on January 15, 2020. The case concerned the federal-sector provision (§633a(a)) of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) of 1967. 
  • The issue: Whether the federal-sector provision of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, which provides that personnel actions affecting agency employees aged 40 years or older shall be made free from any "discrimination based on age," 29 U.S.C. §633a(a), requires a plaintiff to prove that age was a but-for cause of the challenged personnel action.
  • The outcome: In an 8-1 ruling, SCOTUS reversed and remanded the 11th Circuit's decision, holding the plain meaning of §633a(a) "indicates that the statute does not require proof that an employment decision would have turned out differently if age had not been taken into account." 
     
• The case Kansas v. Glover came on a writ of certiorari to the Kansas Supreme Court and was argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on November 4, 2019. The case concerned the Fourth Amendment and the evidence needed by a police officer to make an investigatory stop.
  • The issue: Whether, for purposes of an investigative stop under the Fourth Amendment, it is reasonable for an officer to suspect that the registered owner of a vehicle is the one driving the vehicle absent any information to the contrary. 
  • The outcome: The court reversed and remanded the Kansas Supreme Court's decision in an 8-1 ruling, holding that when an officer lacks information negating an inference that the vehicle's owner is driving the vehicle, an investigative traffic stop made after running a vehicle's license plate and learning that the registered owner's driver's license has been revoked is reasonable under the Fourth Amendment.

• As of April 6, 2020, the court had issued decisions in 20 cases this term. Between 2007 and 2018, SCOTUS released opinions in 924 cases, averaging between 70 and 90 cases per year.

Candidate filing period ends for congressional races in Arizona, North Dakota, and Oklahoma

• The major-party filing deadlines to run for elected office in three states have passed. The deadlines in both Arizona and North Dakota were on April 6; the deadline in Oklahoma was on April 10.
   
• In Arizona, candidates filed for the following congressional offices:

• • One U.S. Senate seat. A special election is being held to fill the Senate seat vacated by John McCain (R) upon his death on August 25, 2018. The current appointed incumbent, Martha McSally (R), filed for election to the seat. The winner of the special election will serve the remaining two years of McCain’s term.
  • Nine U.S. House seats. All nine incumbents filed for re-election.
     

• In North Dakota, candidates filed for the following congressional office:

• • One U.S. House seat. The incumbent, Kelly Armstrong (R), filed for re-election.
     
• In Oklahoma, candidates filed for the following congressional offices:

• • One U.S. Senate seat. The incumbent, Jim Inhofe (R), filed for re-election.
  • Five U.S. House seats. All five incumbents filed for re-election.
     
• North Dakota’s primary is scheduled for June 9, Oklahoma’s primary is scheduled for June 30, and Arizona’s primary is scheduled for August 4. The general elections in all three states are scheduled for November 3, 2020.
   
• Arizona’s and North Dakota’s filing deadlines were the 32nd and 33rd to take place in the 2020 election cycle; Oklahoma’s deadline was the 34th. The next statewide filing deadline is on April 21 in Michigan.

Deadline passes for election officials to receive Alaska Democratic presidential primary mail-in ballots

• The Alaska Democratic Party announced on March 23 that in-person voting in its presidential primary, originally scheduled for April 4, was canceled in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Instead, the party expanded its vote-by-mail process. The deadline for ballots to be received is Friday. Results will be announced by Saturday.
   
• Former Vice President Joe Biden (D), Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.), and six other withdrawn candidates appear on the ranked-choice ballot. Fifteen pledged delegates are at stake.
   
• The Alaska Republican Party announced last year that it would not hold a presidential preference event since President Donald Trump is the incumbent.

Is Congress in session?

• Neither the House nor Senate will be in session next week. Click here to see the full calendar for the second session of the 116th Congress.

Where was the president last week?

• On Monday, Trump had lunch with the Vice President.
• On Tuesday, Trump participated in America CARES: Small Business Relief Update.
• On Wednesday, Trump participated in a phone call with state, local, and tribal leaders on COVID-19 response and mitigation.
• On Thursday, Trump participated in a phone call with mental health leaders and advocates.
• On Friday, Trump participated in an Easter blessing with Bishop Harry Jackson.

What's the latest with the federal judiciary?

• 81 federal judicial vacancies
• 42 pending nominations
• 7 future federal judicial vacancies

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