lag in tallying scientists fret - static01.nyt.com · 23 hours ago  · problems are being cited as...

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Election officials in New YorkCity widely distributed mail-inballots for the primary on June 23,which featured dozens of hard-fought races. The officials hadhoped to make voting much easi-er, but they did not seem preparedfor the response: more than 10times the number of absentee bal-lots received in recent elections inthe city.

Now, nearly six weeks later, twoclosely watched congressionalraces remain undecided, and ma-jor delays in counting a deluge of400,000 mail-in ballots and otherproblems are being cited as exam-ples of the challenges facing thenation as it looks toward conduct-ing the November general elec-tion during the pandemic.

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo andother officials are trading blamefor the botched counting in thecity, and the Postal Service is com-ing under criticism over whetherit is equipped to handle the sharpincrease in absentee ballots.

Election lawyers said one areaof concern in New York City wasthat mail-in ballots have prepaidreturn envelopes. The PostalService apparently had difficultyprocessing some of them cor-rectly and, as a result, an un-known number of votes — per-haps thousands — may have beenwrongfully disqualified because ofa lack of a postmark.

Thousands more ballots in thecity were discarded by election of-ficials for minor errors, or noteven sent to voters until the daybefore the primary, making it allbut impossible for the ballots to bereturned in time.

In recent days, PresidentTrump has also jumped into fray,repeatedly citing the primary in

New York City for his unfoundedclaims that mail-in voting is sus-ceptible to fraud. There is no evi-dence that the primary resultswere tainted by criminal malfea-sance, according to a wide array ofelection officials and representa-tives of campaigns.

Still, candidates and politicalanalysts are warning that govern-ment officials at all levels need totake urgent action to avoid anightmare in November.

“This election is a canary in thecoal mine,” said Suraj Patel, aDemocrat running for Congress ina district that includes parts ofManhattan, Brooklyn andQueens, who has filed a federal

Lag in TallyingMail-In Ballots

Raises Alarms

New York City Is StillDeciding June Races

By JESSE McKINLEY

In April, with hospitals over-whelmed and much of the UnitedStates in lockdown, the Depart-ment of Health and Human Serv-ices produced a presentation forthe White House arguing that rap-id development of a coronavirusvaccine was the best hope to con-trol the pandemic.

“DEADLINE: Enable broad ac-cess to the public by October2020,” the first slide read, with thedate in bold.

Given that it typically takesyears to develop a vaccine, thetimetable for the initiative, calledOperation Warp Speed, was in-credibly ambitious. With tens ofthousands dying and tens of mil-lions out of work, the crisis de-manded an all-out public-privateresponse, with the governmentsupplying billions of dollars topharmaceutical and biotechnolo-gy companies, providing logisticalsupport and cutting through redtape.

It escaped no one that the pro-posed deadline also intersectednicely with President Trump’sneed to curb the virus before theelection in November.

The ensuing race for a vaccine— in the middle of a campaign inwhich the president’s handling ofthe pandemic is the key issue afterhe has spent his time in office un-dermining science and the exper-tise of the federal bureaucracy —is now testing the system set up toensure safe and effective drugs toa degree never before seen.

Under constant pressure from aWhite House anxious for goodnews and a public desperate for asilver bullet to end the crisis, thegovernment’s researchers arefearful of political intervention inthe coming months and are strug-gling to ensure that the govern-ment maintains the right balancebetween speed and rigorous regu-lation, according to interviewswith administration officials, fed-eral scientists and outside ex-perts.

Even in a less politicallycharged environment, therewould be a fraught debate abouthow much to accelerate theprocess of trials and approval. Thelonger that vaccines are tested be-fore being released, the likelierthey are to be safe and effective.

But with 1,000 people dyingeach day in the United States,schools finding it difficult to re-open and the deep recession in-flicting economic pain across thecountry, the desire to find a way toreturn to normal life is powerfuland transcends partisan politicsand borders. On Sunday, Russiaannounced that it planned to starta nationwide inoculation cam-paign in October with a vaccinethat had yet to complete clinicaltrials, the latest evidence of the

SCIENTISTS FRETAS WHITE HOUSE

RUSHES VACCINE

EYEING SAFETY VS. NEED

Fears of Pressure to Handan ‘October Surprise’

to the President

This article is by Sharon LaFra-niere, Katie Thomas, Noah Weiland,Peter Baker and Annie Karni.

Continued on Page A9

BILL INGALLS/NASA, VIA AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE — GETTY IMAGES

NASA astronauts returned to Earth on Sunday, parachuting into the Gulf of Mexico to end a flight by Elon Musk’s SpaceX. Page A17.Making a Splashdown

When Liz Herring arrived atGeorge Washington University asa freshman in 1966, she entered acapital city in the throes of the civilrights movement. Just threeyears after a quarter-million peo-ple had crowded the National Mallto hear the Rev. Dr. Martin LutherKing Jr., Congress was debatingcivil rights legislation as violentprotests continued across thecountry.

Yet, little of that political unrestreached Kappa Alpha Theta, theall-white sorority the future sena-tor from Massachusetts wouldsoon pledge. Yearbook photosshow Ms. Herring in a group ofsmiling young women, corsagespinned to their white dresses, hairperfectly flipped up at the ends.

The young Ms. Herring, whofought her mother to attend col-lege away from her conservativehometown, went to rush partiesand meetings, charity events andthe annual “goat show,” a sketchcomedy performance for all of theGreek organizations, where amaster of ceremonies defendedsororities as a “unifying force” forthe school. No Black woman hadever been offered acceptance intoany of the sororities on campus.

More than half a century later,the young college coed, who nowgoes by Senator Elizabeth War-ren, led the charge in Congress torequire the Pentagon to renamebases that honor Confederate mil-itary leaders. She spent much ofher time on the trail during the

Warren’s PathTo AwakeningOn Racial Bias

By LISA LERERand SYDNEY EMBER

Continued on Page A22

This month, many collegesaround the country plan to wel-come back thousands of studentsinto something they hope will re-semble normal campus life. Butthey face challenges unlike anyother American institution — con-taining the coronavirus among ayoung, impulsive population thatnot only studies together, but livestogether, parties together, and, ifdecades of history are any guide,sleeps together.

It will be a hugely complex andcostly endeavor requiring farmore than just the reconfiguringof dorm rooms and cafeterias andthe construction of annexes andtent classrooms to increase social

distancing. It also crucially in-volves the creation of testing pro-grams capable of serving commu-nities the size of small cities andthe enforcement of codes of con-duct among students not eager tobe policed.

Who will be tested for the coro-navirus and how quickly can theyget results? Will mask wearing bemandated? And what will happento tailgating, keg parties andsneaking into your partner’s dormroom? Colleges are mapping

strategies as varied as the con-trasting Covid regulations en-acted by the states, reflecting theculture and leadership of theirschools.

Syracuse is vowing to play thestrict parent, requiring studentsto sign codes of conduct with pen-alties for violating Covid-19 rulesmore severe than the punishmentfor smoking marijuana. But theUniversity of Kentucky ispresenting a more lenient front,adopting existing honor codesthat urge students to “promotepersonal responsibility and peeraccountability.”

And the University of Texas-Austin has prohibited studentsfrom holding parties on or off cam-pus, banned overnight guests indorm rooms and warned students

Colleges Cram for a Test: ‘Can We Open Safely?’By ANEMONA HARTOCOLLIS

and SHAWN HUBLER

Moving into the dorms last week during a staggered return to N.C. State University in Raleigh.GERRY BROOME/ASSOCIATED PRESS

Just Getting Students to Stay 6 Feet ApartPoses a Challenge

Continued on Page A8

For Graham Ivan Clark, the on-line mischief-making startedearly.

By the age of 10, he was playingthe video game Minecraft, in partto escape what he told friends wasan unhappy home life. InMinecraft, he became known asan adept scammer with an explo-

sive temper who cheated peopleout of their money, several friendssaid.

At 15, he joined an online hack-ers’ forum. By 16, he had gravi-tated to the world of Bitcoin, ap-pearing to involve himself in a

theft of $856,000 of the cryptocur-rency, though he was nevercharged for it, social media and le-gal records show. On Instagramposts afterward, he showed upwith designer sneakers and abling-encrusted Rolex.

The teenager’s digital misbe-havior ended on Friday when thepolice arrested him at a Tampa,Fla., apartment. Florida prosecu-tors said Mr. Clark, now 17, was the

The Troubled Online Path of a Teen ‘Mastermind’This article is by Nathaniel Pop-

per, Kate Conger and Kellen Brown-ing.

From Minecraft Tricksto Huge Twitter Hack

Continued on Page A18

The city’s Board of Electionssaid it had a staff shortage.

VICTOR J. BLUE FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Continued on Page A19

An illustrated guide to how schools willtry to control the virus when studentsreturn, this fall or in the future. PAGE A5

TRACKING AN OUTBREAK A4-11

Back to School, GingerlyThe link is already a point of pride, butsome Italians fear it will not be enoughto revive the aging port city. PAGE A14

INTERNATIONAL A12-14

A New Bridge for GenoaSix of our critics offer their thoughts onthe visual album called “Black Is King,”a work rooted in “The Gift,” her “LionKing”-inspired effort. PAGE C1

ARTS C1-6

Analyzing Beyoncé’s Latest

As federal agents withdraw from a city,demonstrators shift their focus back tolocal law enforcement and their crimi-nal justice system. PAGE A15

NATIONAL A15-19, 22

Portland Turns to Original FoeLenders don’t make a lot on loans under$100,000, but there are programs tohelp, enhancing communities and buoy-ing buyers in the process. PAGE B1

BUSINESS B1-7

A Little Mortgage, a Big Boost

A surge in virus cases. Joblessness anda broken unemployment claims system.And, it’s hurricane season. PAGE A4

Florida’s Summer of Dread

Briefings by Kayleigh McEnany, thepress secretary, have grown less infor-mative and lost viewers. PAGE A18

An Official Voice Less Heard

Telenovelas, Mexican soap operas,enjoy renewed popularity as viewersseek relief in a familiar genre. PAGE A12

Mexico’s TV Comfort FoodRecognizable by his walrus mustache,Wilford Brimley specialized in cantan-kerous characters. He was 85. PAGE D7

OBITUARIES D7-8

Star of ‘Cocoon’ and TV Ads

On social media, competitors are shar-ing their experiences in the wake of adocumentary that highlights verbal andphysical abuse by coaches. PAGE D1

SPORTSMONDAY D1-6

Gymnasts’ Fight Goes Global

Charles M. Blow PAGE A20

EDITORIAL, OP-ED A20-21

It was a weekend of chaos onTikTok — unleashed on Fridaynight when President Trump said,while aboard Air Force One, thathe might ban the video app.

The surprise announcementsent influencers in droves ontolivestreams to give possibly pre-mature teary and heartfelt good-byes to their fans, asking them tojoin them on apps like Instagram,

YouTube and Triller. For agenciesthat manage talent on the plat-form, it was a long weekend ofhand-holding and downloadingTikTok archives for posterity.Some users, in a last-hurrah bidfor virality, reposted TikToks they

said had previously been removedby the service for violating nudityor profanity guidelines.

Others tried to make light of thesituation. Addison Easterling, 19,a TikTok star who dropped out ofLouisiana State University to pur-sue a full-time influencer career,posted a video of herself pretend-ing to knock on the college’s doorsto let her back in. “Me at LSU to-morrow,” she captioned it.

Trump’s Talk of Banning TikTok Inflames Gen ZBy TAYLOR LORENZ Both Creators and Fans

Feel a World Shake

Continued on Page A16

VOL. CLXIX . . . No. 58,774 © 2020 The New York Times Company MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2020 Printed in Chicago $3.00

Mostly cloudy. Intervals of showersand thunderstorms for most. Cooler.Breezy later at the lake. Highs fromthe upper 60s to the lower 70s.Weather map appears on Page B8.

National Edition