Sanders urges Wisconsin to delay April 7 primary

Bernie Sanders called for Wisconsin to delay its April 7 primaries to help curb the spread of the coronavirus, according to a press release from his campaign on Wednesday.

Why it matters: So far, 14 states and one territory have postponed their primaries because of the pandemic, but Wisconsin has held firm to its date.

• Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat, requested that absentee ballots be sent to all of the state’s 3.3 million voters, the New York Times reports.
• That's set up a battle between Democratic and Republican lawmakers in the state over loosening voting restrictions in the midst of the pandemic.

What he's saying: "The state should delay Tuesday’s vote, extend early voting and work to move entirely to vote-by-mail. While we wait for a decision, we urge our supporters to vote-by-mail," Sanders said.

The big picture: The virus has motivated many state legislators to consider expanding voting options within their states — but laws, political calculations and a hefty price tag could hamstring those efforts, Axios' Stef Kight and Alexi McCammond report.

• 12 states still don't let all voters cast their ballots by mail.

Go deeper: Biden and Sanders outline coronavirus plans of attack