Democratic Debate Moved From Phoenix to Washington Studio

(Bloomberg) -- The Democratic primary debate scheduled for Sunday night in Phoenix, Arizona, will now be held in CNN studios in Washington amid concerns about coronavirus, the Democratic National Committee said in a statement.

The one-on-one debate between Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders was moved out of “an abundance of caution,” said a statement from DNC spokeswoman Xochitl Hinojosa.

Hinojosa said the move was made to reduce cross-country travel for the candidates and moderators. Both Biden and Sanders are on the East Coast.

The debate, sponsored by CNN and Univision, was going to be held in Phoenix because the state’s primary is on Tuesday.

CNN also announced that Jorge Ramos, a Univision anchor, was possibly exposed to coronavirus. The network said he will not serve as a moderator as planned. Univision’s Ilia Calderón will take his place, alongside CNN’s Dana Bash and Jake Tapper. The debate is still set to take place 8 to 10 p.m. ET Sunday.

“Both Mr. Ramos and the person he was in contact with are in good health and symptom free,” Hinojosa said in a statement. “Despite being cleared by medical professionals and out of an abundance of caution, Jorge has decided to step aside from participating in the upcoming March 15 Democratic debate.”

(Disclaimer: Michael Bloomberg, the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP, also sought the Democratic presidential nomination. He endorsed Joe Biden on March 4.)

To contact the reporter on this story: Emma Kinery in Washington at ekinery@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Wendy Benjaminson at wbenjaminson@bloomberg.net, Max Berley

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