Joe Biden says Democrats 'may have to do a virtual' national convention instead of a massive meeting in Milwaukee

Democratic presidential front-runner Joe Biden says the 2020 Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee may need to become a virtual event due to the coronavirus pandemic.

"Well, we're going to have to do a convention — may have to do a virtual convention," Biden said Sunday on ABC's "This Week."

"I think we should be thinking about that right now."

The 2020 DNC was just delayed from July to mid-August.

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The massive event was supposed to be staged July 13-16 and attract up to 50,000 people to Milwaukee.

Convention organizers announced Thursday that the convention was being pushed back from July to the week of Aug. 17 to give them more time to cope with the coronavirus pandemic.

But much remains unknown, including the convention's format, crowd size and schedule.

A virtual convention could still be held in Milwaukee but would likely involve a dramatically smaller number of people.

"The idea of holding the convention is going to be necessary. We may not be able to put 10, 20, 30,000 people in one place, and that's very possible," Biden told ABC this morning.

"Again let's see where it is — and what we do between now and then is going to dictate a lot of that as well," he added. "But my point is that I think you just got to follow the science."

Joe Solmonese, the chief executive officer of the 2020 Democratic National Convention Committee, said that ensuring the safety of Milwaukee and all convention-goers is the group's top priority.

"Unlike President Trump, who refuses to acknowledge that this unprecedented global health crisis will impact convention planning, we have said all along that our team is exploring a range of contingency options to ensure we can deliver a successful convention without unnecessary risk to public health," Solmonese said. 

"The convention planning team will remain in constant communication with the local, state, and federal officials responsible for protecting public health and security, and will continue to follow their guidance."

Biden was asked about Wisconsin's plan to forge ahead with its Tuesday election, which includes in-person voting on the presidential primary, a state Supreme Court race and local elections.

Local officials, Democratic lawmakers and Gov. Tony Evers have called for the election to be pushed back and changed to a mail-only vote.

Biden's presidential primary opponent, Independent U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, has also called for Wisconsin to delay its Tuesday election and extend early voting in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

But Republican lawmakers at the state Capitol have stalled those efforts, meaning in-person voting is still on track for Tuesday.

Biden said he has been following the lawsuits over the issue, and said people should listen to public health experts. But he stopped short of saying in-person voting should not happen on Tuesday.

"Well, look, I think they should just follow the science," Biden said. "Whatever the science says is what we should do."

Contact Mary Spicuzza at (414) 224-2324 or mary.spicuzza@jrn.com. Follow her on Twitter at @MSpicuzzaMJS or Facebook at facebook.com/mary.spicuzza.