#BlueStarBrief August 2020 – US Presidential Campaign and Elections Update, UK Maritime Sanctions Guidance, Mexic o President’s US Visit, and more…

With the November 3, 2020 U.S. presidential election less than 100 days away, we are providing analysis from developments on the campaign trail.

Primary elections and caucuses across the United States will conclude on August 11—forming a key part of the nominating process for the eventual candidates for president. This process will culminate at the Democratic and Republican national nominating conventions on August 17-20 and August 24-27, respectively—during which each political party will formally choose their nominees for President and Vice President.

The presumed Democratic nominee is former Vice President Joe Biden joined by his yet to be announced running mate for Vice President. The presumed nominees on the Republican ticket are incumbents President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence.

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced both parties to dramatically revamp their conventions by scheduling primarily virtual programming and video broadcasted speeches to remote audiences.

Following the conventions and leading up to Election Day on November 3rd, the campaign will include three televised presidential debates and one vice presidential debate:

September 29 — First presidential debate, Cleveland, Ohio
October 7 — Vice presidential debate, Salt Lake City, Utah
October 15 — Second presidential debate, Miami, Florida
October 22 — Third presidential debate, Nashville, Tennessee

The winner of the presidential election will be inaugurated on January 20, 2021.

In addition to the presidential election, U.S. voters will also elect Members of Congress, including all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 out of 100 total Senate seats, as well as state and local government officials.

On July 27, the United Kingdom’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation announced a new set of sanctions guidance affecting the maritime shipping sector. This notice follows the U.S. Government's own recent Global Sanctions Advisory, as reported in our June #BlueStarBrief.

The UK guidance puts the maritime sector on notice about the threat of financial sanctions, outlines examples of illicit and suspicious activity, and recommends steps companies should take to mitigate their risk and exposure. The UK guidance is the first non-U.S. jurisdiction to provide this comprehensive guidance.

The UK guidance highlights the importance of companies operating in the maritime sector to increase their internal sanctions compliance programs—areas where Blue Star Strategies has long standing experience.

Click here to learn more about our work helping clients manage similar risks.

Karen A. Tramontano published an op-ed highlighting the plight of workers in the Global South, and was interviewed on the role of advocacy in a democracy.

Daniel P. Erikson was interviewed on NTN24 on the diplomatic conflict between the United States and China and moderated an Inter-American Dialogue discussion on Haiti and Covid-19: Analysis and Solutions.

Dan also spoke on a Canadian Council for the Americas webinar analyzing the implications of the first meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador—and was interviewed by The New Yorker and Bloomberg Financiero TV.

Pero Jolevski published an op-ed about the importance of voting in Macedonia's parliamentary elections.

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