Coronavirus: Trump Rethinks NY Restrictions; Primary Delayed

NEW YORK, NY — Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the state will delay its April 28 primary to June 23 due to the new coronavirus outbreak. At a news conference Saturday, he said the presidential primary will be combined with the state and federal primary scheduled for June 23.

This would affect village elections as well, the governor said. They had originally been scheduled for March 18, but were postponed to April 28.

Additionally, Cuomo said the state was extending the tax filing deadline to July 15.

"That is good news for individuals and businesses," he said, "but it's bad news for the state of New York," because the state will be receiving no revenue until that time.

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After President Donald Trump said Saturday he was considering imposing two-week travel restrictions for New York, and possibly Connecticut and New Jersey, Trump tweeted the extreme measure wouldn't be necessary. However, he said he asked federal health officials to issue a strong travel advisory.

"On the recommendation of the White House CoronaVirus Task Force, and upon consultation with the Governor’s of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, I have asked the @CDCgov to issue a strong Travel Advisory, to be administered by the Governors, in consultation with the ....Federal Government," Trump tweeted. "A quarantine will not be necessary. Full details will be released by CDC tonight. Thank you!"

Cuomo said he has not spoken with the president about that and doesn't know how that could be legally enforceable.

"I don't even like the sound of it, not knowing what it is," he said.

The governor said the number of coronavirus-related deaths as of Saturday in the state were 728, up from 519.

In what he categorized as somewhat good news, Cuomo said the number of people newly hospitalized for COVID-19 was 847 for March 27, down from 1,154 for March 26.

Similarly, there were fewer ICU admissions for March 27 than or March 26 — 172 as opposed to 374.

"You could argue that the trend is slowing," Cuomo said, adding that he doesn't put too much stock into one number.

The total number of positive new coronavirus cases in the state for Saturday was 52,318, which is an increase of 7,681 from Friday. Westchester still leads all other locations other than New York City with 7,875 cases (up 688). Nassau County has 5,537, up 880; Suffolk has 4,138, up 753. Rockland County saw an increase of 439 cases, bringing its total to 1,896.