Markets are bracing for recession, hospitals are banning elective surgeries to prepare more beds for ill patients, and Americans are hoarding toilet paper and frozen vegetables, as they prepare for weeks of self-quarantine. As the growing panic produced by the COVID-19 pandemic sweeps across the U.S., it’s easy to forget that the U.S. is also in the midst of an incredibly consequential presidential election.
But even in the midst of unprecedented chaos, the Democratic primary has trudged on, and eventually, the general election will also begin in earnest. But what does a process that typically entails large crowds, handshakes, and baby kissing look like in the age of social distancing? How do people cast votes at crowded polls when President Donald Trump has asked them to stay six feet apart from each other? A lot of how this will pan out is still unclear, but there are some answers.
Here’s what we know.
1. Will the primaries be postponed?
Some already have been.
Ohio announced late Monday evening that the state would postpone voting on Tuesday to a later date. Ohio health director Dr. Amy Acton said she was ordering the closure of polling locations in order to “avoid the imminent threat with a high probability of widespread exposure to COVID-19.” It’s unclear when voting will take place, but likely in June.
Georgia, meanwhile, has moved its primary from March 24 to May 19; Kentucky moved its primary from May 19 to June 23; Louisiana moved from April 4 to June 20; and Maryland moved its primary from April 28 to June 2.
So, yes, states are allowed to postpone their primaries into June (June 9 to be exact) and they have done just that. We’ll likely see more postponements as the virus spreads.
What does it all mean? Well, it could mean a very long primary season. One that leads straight into the convention.
2. Can’t voters just mail in ballots?
Here’s the thing, orchestrating a state-wide election is an incredibly difficult task that takes months, if not years, of planning, training, and security tests.
Changing the entire system quickly is unwise (see: Iowa). It’s also tricky because each state has its own rules about how voters can cast their ballots. Some allow for mail-in submissions, others let voters stagger into their polling places over a few days, while others still enforce strict one-day-only voting rules.
Still, we’ll likely see some court challenges in states where there are restrictions on mail-in ballots. In Florida, for example, some voters rights groups are currently in court asking for an extension of vote-by-mail ballots and other accommodations for voters who don’t want to go to polling stations. Some states are also allowing curbside voting, where Americans won’t have to leave their cars to cast a ballot.
We can expect more changes coming: Wyoming announced recently that its April 4 caucus will now all be by mail.
3. Can the Democratic party just pick the nominee?
What if the coronavirus reaches worst-case scenario levels and the nation is essentially quarantined? If people are too sick to go to the polls? Could the Democratic National Committee just pick someone?
Well, technically, yes.
The DNC could cancel the rest of the primaries if they wanted to, but there is little to no chance that would ever happen. If it did, pledged delegates would vote for whoever their districts voted for and unpledged delegates and superdelegates would likely be free agents, opting to vote for whomever they’re compelled to vote for at the nominating convention.
4. What about the conventions?
Democrats are expected to hold their party’s nominating convention in Wisconsin this June and Republicans will hold theirs in North Carolina in late August.
The conventions involve lots of large crowds, mingling ,and partying: things that don’t mix well with pandemics. As of right now, neither party has canceled its convention (which involve years of planning, millions and millions of dollars and hundreds of jobs, not to mention the huge economic boost to the cities they hold them in).
Democratic National Committee chair Tom Perez said in a recent interview with Axios that he wasn’t even “contemplating” canceling.
The DNC’s current charter requires that delegates be at the convention in person to cast their votes for the nominee, but those rules could be changed quickly by the convention’s Standing Committee on Rules. It could be possible, in an extreme case, to allow for delegates to vote online.
The Republican National Convention, meanwhile, is closely monitoring the situation but has not announced any changes to their August activities.
As of now, conventions will most likely go forward but with downsized events.
5. What happens if there’s a contested convention, but the event is canceled?
If neither Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders or former Vice President Joe Biden is able to clinch 1,991 pledged delegates by June and both Democratic candidates stay in the race, it’s likely that Democrats will hold a contested convention. That means that there’s a second round of voting with unpledged superdelegates to help determine the nominee.
If the convention is canceled, it’s likely that these votes will take place online, instead of in person.
6. Could the coronavirus impact voting in the general election?
This would be incredibly difficult. Unlike primary voting, the date of the general election is set by federal law. That means that in order to change the date Congress would have to pass a law and the President would have to sign that law. That law could then be challenged in the courts.
What could change is the way that people vote, which is set on a state level. States could make it easier to vote by mail or allow for curbside voting.
7. How are campaigns changing their plans because of the virus?
Many campaign staffers are working from home and all rallies have been canceled. For now, most events are taking place online. Both Biden and Sanders have held “digital rallies” and “digital town halls.”
On Monday night, Sanders hosted a live-streamed concert with performers like Neil Young.
Campaigns are also encouraging volunteers to stop knocking on doors and to utilize their phone-dialing and texting systems instead.
8. Are campaigns earning less money/spending money differently?
While it’s still too early to see how campaigns have changed their spending habits, they’re certainly spending less on events and on travel—both major expenditures. TV and social media ad buys, however, should remain the same.
The lack of fundraising events could adversely impact Joe Biden, who accepts PAC money, and the lack of door-knocking and in-person grassroots fundraising could negatively impact Sanders’ earning potential.
9. Will we see a debate between Trump and the Democratic nominee?
That will be something that the President and nominee have to work out, but it’s possible that the debate will be in a closed studio without a live audience.
10. How are candidates staying safe?
Democratic candidates say that they are following the precautions that most Americans are being told by the CDC to follow. They are practicing hand washing, staying six feet away from others when possible, and aren’t shaking hands.
Trump has said that he is being closely monitored by White House doctors and that he has tested negative for the virus.
More must-read stories from Fortune:
—What the world’s biggest economies are doing to fight coronavirus and recession
—Will donors of color invest in white presidential candidates?
—Big business rallies behind Joe Biden
—How swing state economies have performed since the 2016 election
—Listen to Leadership Next, a Fortune podcast examining the evolving role of CEO
—WATCH: What happens to leftover campaign funds once a candidate drops out?
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