Every election cycle, political journalists and observers wait in anticipation for the “October Surprise” — the unexpected news event that has the potential to shake up the race. In 2016, it was FBI Director James Comey’s announcement of a new development in the investigation of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server as secretary of state, driving negative coverage that cost her the election. Four years later, President Donald Trump and his media and congressional allies have been trying to recreate that magic to boost his reelection odds against former Vice President Joe Biden.
But this year’s October Surprise isn’t about a candidate’s adherence to the Presidential Records Act or debunked allegations of public corruption. It’s something far more consequential and visceral to the public — a third wave of COVID-19 cases bearing down on the country on Trump’s watch, in part because he’s been taking advice from his Fox News cabinet rather than listening to public health experts.
Coronavirus cases are rising in virtually every state. The U.S. set a single-day high of 77,640 cases on Thursday, 12 days out from the election, according to NBC News. There were also more than 1,000 recorded deaths that day due to the virus, and given the expanding case load we are likely to see that tragic figure matched in the coming days. This “could become the largest coronavirus outbreak of the pandemic so far,” The Atlantic warns, with the virus now “found in every kind of American community, from tiny farm towns to affluent suburbs to bustling border cities.” Continue reading.