Campaigning in the age of the coronavirus
WASHINGTON (SBG) - The rallies, the revolution and the race have all come to a quiet halt.
With the novel coronavirus touching our daily lives in every possible way, presidential campaigns have had to shift their strategies.
"I think what candidates are doing is trying to figure out how to have interpersonal communication all online," said Peter Loge, a former campaign staffer and current professor at George Washington University. "They’re trying to figure out how to talk to people through digital platforms, and that’s really tricky."
For Joe Biden, it was a bumpy start, but he's now making more appearances on camera and online with supportive groups launching ads trying to differentiate his policies from the current occupant of the White House.
Senator Sanders is still in the race, hoping for an April debate, and he has also mobilized his supporters to raise money for victims and those hurt financially by the coronavirus.
President Trump, meanwhile, has been able to stay in the spotlight with daily White House Coronavirus Task Force briefings but also with a quick pivot, and $350 million invested into a virtual campaign.
"It was about taking the tools in our tool belt and just using them a little bit more," said Trump/Pence Campaign Spokesperson Rick Gorka, adding that the Biden campaign's failure to do so is telling.
"When the democrat presumptive nominee takes four days to set up a zoom call you know that’s a campaign and a party that's behind the times," added Gorka.
In an election match-up between President Trump and Joe Biden, Biden is currently slightly ahead 49% to 47%, according to a recent Washington Post-ABC News poll, but that same poll also showed President Trump with the highest approval rating of his Presidency.
