2020 Maine Question 1, Results
The veto effort was defeated 73% (281,750) to 27% (105,214). A total of 386,964 votes were cast.


2020 Maine Republican presidential primary
The 2020 Maine Republican presidential primary took place on March 3, 2020, as one of 14 contests scheduled for Super Tuesday in the Republican Party primaries for the 2020 presidential election. The primary was a closed primary (only open to party members) although unenrolled voters were permitted to enroll in a party at the polls with same day registration.


2020 Maine Republican presidential primary
The primary was held along with a people's veto referendum to reject changes to Maine's vaccination laws.


2020 Maine Republican presidential primary, Results
Incumbent President Donald Trump was the only candidate to qualify for the ballot. His 84% share of the vote was his worst performance of any state in the primaries. Several town clerks speculated that the high number of blank votes cast was due to Republican voters being more interested in voting in the anti-vaccination people's veto referendum than in the primary.


2020 Maine State Senate election
The 2020 Maine State Senate election was held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020, with the primary election using instant-runoff voting being held on July 14, 2020, to elect the 130th Maine Senate. Voters in all 35 districts of the Maine State Senate will elect their senators. The elections will coincide with the elections for other offices, including for U.S. President, U.S. Senate, U.S. House and the Maine House of Representatives. Republicans only needed to gain four seats to win control of the chamber; they instead gained only one and lost another two, resulting in a net increase in the Democratic Party's majority.


2020 Maine State Senate election, Background
In the 2018 Maine State Senate elections, Democrats gained control of Maine State Senate by a 21–14 margin. Before those elections, Republicans had controlled the chamber since 2014 Maine State Senate elections.


2020 Maine elections
A general election was held in the U.S. state of Maine on November 3, 2020. The office of the Maine Secretary of State oversaw the election process, including voting and vote counting.


2020 Maine elections
To vote by mail, registered Maine voters must have requested a ballot by October 29, 2020. As of early October some 339,930 voters had requested mail ballots. Each mailed ballot was counted if it had arrived at the relevant clerk's office by 8pm on November 3rd.


2020 Maine elections, State offices, Maine Senate
All 35 seats of the Maine Senate were up for election. The Democratic Party won 22 seats and the Republican Party won 13 seats. Democrats gained Districts 13 and 34 while Republicans gained District 2.


2020 Maine elections, State offices, Maine House of Representatives
All 151 seats in the Maine House of Representatives were up for election. The Democrats won 79 seats, Republicans won 66 seats, and independents won 5 seats.


2020 Maine elections, Federal offices, President and vice president of the United States
Maine had 4 electoral votes in the Electoral College. Democrat Joe Biden won 3 electoral votes, the 2 statewide and the 1st congressional district, while Republican Donald Trump won 1 electoral vote from the 2nd congressional district


2020 Maine elections, Federal offices, United States Senate
One of Maine's two United States Senators was up for election. Incumbent Republican Susan Collins won with 51% of the votes.


2020 Maine elections, Federal offices, United States House of Representatives
Both of Maine's seats in the United States House of Representatives were up for election. 2 Democrats were elected. No seats changed hands.


2020 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The 2020 Major League Baseball All-Star Game would have been the 91st Major League Baseball All-Star Game. It was planned to be hosted on July 14 by the Los Angeles Dodgers, which would have been the second All-Star Game held at Dodger Stadium, following the 1980 All-Star Game, and the fourth hosted by the Dodgers. On July 3, the game was canceled due to the delayed start of the 2020 season, which began on July 23 due to the government restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic. It was the first cancellation since 1945, when the All-Star Game that year was not held in compliance with wartime travel restrictions at the time. Dodger Stadium was awarded the 2022 All-Star Game in its place. Fox and ESPN Radio were the game's respective planned television and radio partners.


2020 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, Host selection
Bidding for the 2020 All-Star Game began in 2017. It was awarded on April 11, 2018, by MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred. It would have been the first time since 1980 that Dodger Stadium would serve as the game's host. The Hollywood-inspired logo for the game was unveiled on July 23, 2019, in a ceremony at Dodger Stadium, emceed by longtime Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully.


2020 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, Planned league managers and changes
As the manager of the previous season's American League champion Houston Astros, A. J. Hinch was originally designated as the manager for the American League All-Star team. On January 13, MLB suspended Hinch for the entire 2020 season for his role in the Houston Astros sign stealing scandal. Astros owner Jim Crane subsequently fired Hinch after the announcement. On January 29, it was announced that Hinch's successor, Dusty Baker, would manage the American League instead.


2020 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, Planned league managers and changes
Dave Martinez, manager of the 2019 National League champion Washington Nationals, was designated as the manager for the National League All-Star team.


2020 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, Unofficial starters
Despite the game being cancelled, MLB.com released the players it believed deserved to be recognized as the "Unofficial 2020 All-Stars". The players selected by MLB.com are as follows:


2020 Major League Baseball draft
The 2020 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft took place on June 10 and 11, 2020. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to Major League Baseball (MLB) teams. The draft order was set based on the reverse order of the 2019 MLB season standings. In addition, compensation picks were distributed for players who did not sign from the 2019 MLB draft and for teams who lost qualifying free agents.


2020 Major League Baseball draft
On March 26, 2020, MLB and the MLBPA reached a deal that included the option to shorten the draft to five rounds, and also shorten the 2021 draft to 20 rounds due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In a plan to allow teams to sign an unlimited number of undrafted players for $20,000 each, MLB ultimately opted to shorten the 2020 draft to five rounds. The draft was originally planned to be hosted live for the first time in Omaha, Nebraska, to accompany the since-cancelled 2020 College World Series. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the draft was instead held remotely from MLB Network's studios in Secaucus, New Jersey. With sponsorship from T-Mobile, the event was officially the 2020 MLB Draft Presented by T-Mobile, with ESPN providing live coverage for the first time since 2008, alongside MLB Network.


2020 Major League Baseball draft
The Detroit Tigers, who had the worst record of the 2019 MLB season, selected Spencer Torkelson with the first overall pick in the draft. As punishment for their role in the sign stealing scandal, the Houston Astros forfeited their first- and second-round picks in the draft. The Boston Red Sox also forfeited their second-round pick in the draft as punishment for their own sign-stealing violations. Among the selected players, there were 41 who had played for the United States national baseball team and 2 who had played for the Canada national baseball team.


2020 Major League Baseball draft
On September 18, 2020, the Chicago White Sox promoted Garrett Crochet to the major leagues, becoming the first MLB player in six years to reach the big leagues in the same year in which he was drafted.


2020 Major League Baseball season
The 2020 Major League Baseball season began on July 23 and ended on September 27 with 60 games amidst the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The full 162-game regular season was originally scheduled to begin on March 26. However, the pandemic caused Major League Baseball (MLB) to announce on March 12 that the remainder of spring training was canceled and that the start of the regular season would be delayed by at least two weeks.


2020 Major League Baseball season
On March 16, MLB announced that the season would be postponed indefinitely, following recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to restrict events of more than 50 people. This was the first time that MLB games have been put on hold since the 2001 season, when the season was paused for over a week after the September 11 attacks.


2020 Major League Baseball season
Spring training resumed on July 1 and was rebranded as "Summer Camp". On July 3, the All-Star Game was canceled because of the delay to the regular season. Dodger Stadium, which was set to host the game, will now host the 2022 All-Star Game.


2020 Major League Baseball season
On July 18, the Canadian federal government denied permission for the Toronto Blue Jays to play their home games at Rogers Centre this season on grounds that repeated cross-border trips by both the Blue Jays and their opponents would be a major risk due to the higher spikes in COVID-19 cases in the U.S. compared to those in Canada. The Blue Jays then chose to play their home games at Sahlen Field in Buffalo, home of their Triple-A affiliate Buffalo Bisons.


2020 Major League Baseball season
An expanded 16-team postseason tournament began on September 29, with games of all but the first round being played at neutral sites. The World Series began on October 20 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, and ended on October 27, with the Los Angeles Dodgers defeating the Tampa Bay Rays in six games to win their first title since 1988.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule
The 2020 schedule greatly differed from the normal 162-game schedule. In an effort to reduce travel, each team played only nine opponents during the regular season instead of the usual 19 or 20. Teams were scheduled to play 10 games against each of their four division opponents. The remaining 20 games of the 60-game schedule were interleague contests. To reduce travel, the interleague division match-ups were AL East vs NL East, AL Central vs NL Central, and AL West vs NL West. At 60 games, this was the shortest regular season since 1878.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule
Several international and neutral-site games originally scheduled for the season were canceled due to COVID-19:


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, March agreement between MLB and MLBPA
On March 26, MLB and the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) reached an agreement on multiple considerations related to the start of the season being delayed, including:


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Possible schedules
The indefinite delay of the season caused MLB to internally consider a number of scenarios for playing the season, as well as analysts suggesting ways it could be done. A shortened regular season, a season with many doubleheaders, and a postseason extending into late November with a World Series at an indoor or warm-weather neutral site were suggested.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Possible schedules
In early April, Jeff Passan of ESPN reported that MLB was "increasingly focused on a plan that could allow them to start the season as early as May and has the support of high-ranking federal public health officials". The plan would have involved all 30 teams playing games with no fans in stadiums around the Phoenix metropolitan area, including Chase Field and spring training complexes. Players would have lived in isolation at local hotels.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Possible schedules
Another report from USA Today baseball writer Bob Nightengale detailed another MLB proposal utilizing the Phoenix metro sites, but with the additional use of spring training sites in Florida, Marlins Park in Miami, and St. Petersburg's Tropicana Field. In addition, the 30 teams would be re-aligned for the season depending on their spring training sites into six divisions based upon their locations in Arizona and Florida and agnostic to the usual AL/NL demarcations and traditional geographic rivalries, effectively making the spring training Cactus League and Grapefruit League regular-season leagues. No interleague play would take place and the designated hitter rule would be utilized for all 30 teams, with the World Series occurring in November utilizing the larger MLB sites.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Disagreement over plans for a shortened season
During May and June, MLB and Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) were unable to agree on a specific plan for a shortened season.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Disagreement over plans for a shortened season
In mid-May the MLB owners proposed a schedule of 82 games, to begin in July, with games to be played without fans in attendance. To minimize travel, teams would play only against other teams in their geographical division, plus interleague games against teams in the corresponding division of the other league. A team would play 13 games against each division rival and six games against each team in the other league's division. Postseason play would be expanded from 10 teams to 14, with each league fielding three division winners and four wild card teams. A designated hitter would be allowed in all games. Teams would have 30-man rosters available for each game. The proposal also outlined safety measures for health of players and staff and a modified compensation plan for players.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Disagreement over plans for a shortened season
On June 1, the MLBPA countered with an 114-game proposal, with a regular season running from June 30 to October 31, a November postseason, giving players the right to opt-out of participating, a salary deferral plan in the event the postseason has to be canceled due to a second wave of the virus, and a $100 million advance during the second spring training, among others.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Disagreement over plans for a shortened season
Owners then submitted a 76-game proposal to the players on June 8, with the regular season ending on September 27, the postseason ending in October, 75 percent prorated player salaries, and playoff pool money, among others. The MLBPA responded one day later with an 89-game plan with full prorated player salaries. The owners then sent a 72-game plan with 70 percent prorated player salaries, to which the MLBPA replied in a statement on June 13, "Further dialogue with the league would be futile. It's time to get back to work. Tell us when and where." However, the week of June 15 saw the owners propose a 60-game season while MLBPA counter with a 70-game season, which on June 19 was rejected by the owners.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Disagreement over plans for a shortened season
Amid an increase in cases in Arizona and Florida, including positive cases among staff of the Phillies, and a Blue Jays player showing signs of symptoms, it was reported on June 19 that all spring training sites would be temporarily closed for deep cleaning, and all players would be required to test negative for COVID-19 before entering. It was then reported on June 20 that almost all MLB teams had elected to re-locate their training camps back to their home cities.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Disagreement over plans for a shortened season
On June 22, hours after the MLBPA rejected the MLB's offer to play a 60-game season, MLB owners voted unanimously to impose the 60-game plan. By allowing the owners to unilaterally implement such a plan without the MLBPA, both sides retained the right to file a grievance against the other for not negotiating in good faith. On June 23, both sides agreed to health and safety protocols. Players reported to training camp July 1. Due to concerns related to the pandemic, several players chose not to play the season.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Revised 60-game schedule
On July 6, MLB released the revised schedule for the shortened 60-game season. In the new schedule, teams play 10 games against each of their four divisional opponents in three series, with an unequal number of home games against each opponent. Each team will have 20 home games for division opponents.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Revised 60-game schedule
Interleague play will comprise the other 20 games of the schedule, all against the division of the opposite league, temporarily suspending the yearly rotation of which divisions play each other. Like normal seasons in which corresponding interleague divisions play each other (e.g. 2018), teams play six games against their "natural rival" and three or four games against each of the other four teams in the division. However, for this year only, the Cleveland Indians were paired with the Pittsburgh Pirates instead of their normal rivals, the Cincinnati Reds, and the Detroit Tigers were paired with the Reds instead of the Pirates. This was done to reduce travel for all four teams.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Revised 60-game schedule
The season started on July 23, with two games: New York Yankees at Washington Nationals and San Francisco Giants at Los Angeles Dodgers. The remaining 26 teams opened the season on July 24.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Revised 60-game schedule
On July 23, MLB and MLBPA announced that the postseason will be an expanded 16-team playoff tournament for 2020 only, instead of the normal 10-team tournament. All first and second place teams in the six divisions will qualify for the playoffs. The final two spots in each league will go to the remaining teams with the best win-loss records. The teams in each league will be seeded by division winners (1–3), division runners-up (4–6), and best teams remaining (7–8).


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Revised 60-game schedule
Seeding ties will be resolved by head-to-head record, intra-league record, and record in final 20 intra-league games, to remove the necessity for additional games. The first round of the playoffs will be a best-of-three series called the Wild Card Series, with all games to be played at the home of the higher seeded team. After that, the postseason will follow the usual pattern of five-game Division series, seven-game League Championship Series, and a seven-game World Series.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Postponed games, COVID-19
COVID-19 outbreaks among the Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals, as well as positive tests on the Cincinnati Reds, New York Mets, Oakland Athletics, and San Francisco Giants, resulted in the postponement of a total of 40 games.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Postponed games, COVID-19
Miami received confirmation that starting pitcher José Ureña had tested positive and would not be available on July 26, but the team decided to play the third and final game of their scheduled series against the Philadelphia Phillies at the direction of Major League Baseball. After additional Miami players and coaches tested positive, MLB postponed Miami's four-game home-and-home series with the Baltimore Orioles, and Philadelphia's four-game home-and-home series with the New York Yankees, both originally scheduled from July 27 to 30.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Postponed games, COVID-19
In order to allow for some flexibility in making games up, the Yankees and Orioles played two games against each other in Baltimore July 29 and 30, moving them up one week from their originally scheduled dates of August 3 and 4. The Marlins later confirmed that 21 players and coaches tested positive. The next series for both teams, Miami's home series against the Washington Nationals and Philadelphia's series at the Toronto Blue Jays, were postponed. Both series would have taken place from July 31 to August 2.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Postponed games, COVID-19
St. Louis had six positive tests resulting in the postponement of three games at the Milwaukee Brewers from July 31 to August 2. Four additional games, a home-and-home series against the Detroit Tigers originally scheduled for August 3 to 6, were also postponed after an additional seven positive tests were reported. After continued positive tests throughout the next week, St. Louis's three-game series against the Chicago Cubs, originally August 7 to 9, and their three-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates, originally August 10 to 12, were postponed. A doubleheader against Detroit on August 13 which would have been made up games from August 3 and 4 was also postponed and later canceled.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Postponed games, COVID-19
Cincinnati had a player test positive resulting in the postponement of two games against Pittsburgh on August 15 and 16. Cincinnati's game against the Kansas City Royals on August 18 was postponed as well.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Postponed games, COVID-19
The New York Mets had a player and staff member test positive resulting in the postponement of their August 20 game against Miami and their three-game series against the New York Yankees on August 21 to 23.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Postponed games, COVID-19
Oakland had a positive test resulting in the postponement of their August 30 game against the Houston Astros. As a precaution, Oakland's three-game series against the Seattle Mariners on September 1 to 3 was postponed.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Postponed games, COVID-19
San Francisco had a positive test resulting in the postponement of two games against the San Diego Padres originally scheduled for September 11 and 12.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Postponed games, COVID-19
All postponed games were made up except for two games between the St. Louis Cardinals and Detroit Tigers, which had no bearing on the playoff teams other than seeding.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Postponed games, Shooting of Jacob Blake
Player protests in response to the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin resulted in the postponement of 11 games.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Schedule, Postponed games, Shooting of Jacob Blake
The Milwaukee Brewers announced that they would not play their August 26 game against the Cincinnati Reds in the wake of the shooting, following three NBA playoff games that were postponed the same day. Two additional games were postponed that day. Seven games on August 27 and one game on August 28 were also postponed.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Postseason
MLB announced the playoff bracket on September 15, consisting of eight teams from each league: the top two teams from each division, plus the teams from each league with the next two best records. The Wild Card Series was a best-of-three series, while the Division Series, League Championship Series, and World Series were their normal lengths. The Wild Card Series games were played at the home field of the higher seeded team.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Postseason
The division and league championship series were played at neutral sites, similar to those used for both the National Basketball Association and National Hockey League playoffs, to limit the possibility of another COVID-19 outbreak that could both disrupt the schedule and affect competitive integrity. The American League played at the San Diego Padres' Petco Park and the Los Angeles Dodgers' Dodger Stadium, while the National League played at the Texas Rangers' Globe Life Field and the Houston Astros' Minute Maid Park. The World Series then took place at Globe Life Field.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Postseason
The Milwaukee Brewers and Houston Astros became the first teams to make the postseason with a record below .500 since the 1981 Royals. Both clubs went 29–31 (.483) in the regular season. The Astros became the first, and currently only, team with a record below .500 to win a playoff series, as they defeated the Minnesota Twins in the Wild Card Series and the Oakland Athletics in the Division Series, before losing the American League Championship Series to the Tampa Bay Rays. They also became the first, and currently only, team with a record below .500 to win a playoff game, as the 1981 Royals and Brewers were swept in the first rounds they played.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Rule changes, Permanent changes announced prior to season
The following changes, effective for the 2020 season, were officially announced by MLB on February 12:


2020 Major League Baseball season, Rule changes, Permanent changes announced prior to season
Additionally, Rule 7.04 governing protested games was amended to read "Protesting a game shall never be permitted, regardless of whether such complaint is based on judgement decisions by the umpire or an allegation that an umpire misapplied these rules or otherwise rendered a decision in violation of these rules."


2020 Major League Baseball season, Rule changes, Temporary rules for shortened 2020 season
The following temporary rules for the shortened 2020 season were announced on June 24. Note that some of these additional changes supersede the rule changes which were announced in February.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Rule changes, Temporary rules for shortened 2020 season
The following temporary rule was announced on July 30, to be effective on August 1.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Managerial changes, Field managers, Offseason
Tingler was named the new manager on October 28, 2019. Tingler had spent the previous five years in the Texas Rangers organization as a coach and a front office executive.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Managerial changes, Field managers, Offseason
On November 12, 2019, Gabe Kapler, who managed the Philadelphia Phillies for the past two seasons, was announced as the new manager.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Managerial changes, Field managers, Offseason
On October 31, 2019, Mike Matheny, who spent last season as the special advisor to Royals general manager Dayton Moore, was named the new manager of the Kansas City Royals. Matheny managed the St. Louis Cardinals from 2012 through mid-July 2018. He had a career record of 591–474 (.555). He led the Cardinals to the postseason in his first four seasons as manager and won the National League pennant in 2013.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Managerial changes, Field managers, Offseason
Ross, who spent the 2015 and 2016 season with the team as a player, was named the new manager on October 24, 2019. Ross spent the last three seasons as the special assistant to baseball operations for the team as well as a baseball analyst for ESPN.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Managerial changes, Field managers, Offseason
On November 27, 2019, Shelton, who spent the previous two seasons as the bench coach for the Minnesota Twins, was named the manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates. He also spent time as a hitting coach for the Cleveland Indians from 2005 to 2009 and a hitting coach for the Tampa Bay Rays from 2010 to 2016 while also serving as a quality control coach for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2017.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Managerial changes, Field managers, Offseason
Maddon was hired by the Angels on October 16, 2019. Maddon had spent 31 years in the Angels organization (12 years as a coach) before managing the Tampa Bay Rays for nine years and the Chicago Cubs for five years.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Managerial changes, Field managers, Offseason
On November 1, 2019, Carlos Beltrán, who played for the team from 2005 to the middle of the 2011 season, was named the new manager of the team. Beltrán was a special adviser to the New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman last season.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Managerial changes, Field managers, Offseason
The Mets hired Rojas on January 22. He has spent the last 13 years in the Mets organization.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Managerial changes, Field managers, Offseason
Girardi, who served as an baseball analyst for the MLB Network the last two seasons, was hired as new manager on October 24, 2019. Girardi previously managed the Florida Marlins for the 2006 season and the New York Yankees from 2008 to 2017.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Managerial changes, Field managers, Offseason
On January 29, the Astros hired Dusty Baker to replace Hinch. He managed the San Francisco Giants from 1993 to 2002, the Chicago Cubs from 2003 to 2006, the Cincinnati Reds from 2008 to 2013, and the Washington Nationals during the 2016 and 2017 seasons. His overall managerial record is 1863–1636 (.532) in the regular season, and 23–32 (.418) in the playoffs, losing the 2002 World Series.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Managerial changes, Field managers, Offseason
Roenicke was promoted from bench coach to interim manager on February 11. A longtime coach, his only managerial experience was with the Milwaukee Brewers from 2011 to 2015, compiling a record of 342–331 (.508), with one playoff appearance and a 5–6 (.455) record in the postseason. On April 22, the "interim" tag was removed from Roenicke's title, following MLB's findings about the 2018 Red Sox, which focused on the team's video replay operator.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Awards and honors, All-MLB Team
Players are selected through fan votes (50%) and votes from a panel of experts (50%). The winners are selected based on merit, with no set number of nominees per position and no distinction between leagues.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Uniforms
On January 25, 2019, MLB announced that Nike would become the new exclusive uniform supplier for all MLB teams, under a 10-year deal beginning in 2020. Under Armour backed out of its existing supply agreement as a cost-cutting measure.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Uniforms, Anniversaries and special events
Arizona tweaked their uniforms, including removing the darker away uniforms and the diamond pattern on the uniforms.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Uniforms, Anniversaries and special events
Cincinnati added a new alternate jersey and a new spring training jersey.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Uniforms, Anniversaries and special events
Milwaukee introduced new uniforms, including a return to the ball-in-glove logo used as their primary logo from 1978 to 1993. They also switched out their gold color to yellow.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Uniforms, Anniversaries and special events
Minnesota added a new alternate uniform, utilizing its powder blue 1973–1986 road uniform design.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Uniforms, Anniversaries and special events
Pittsburgh brought back the script "Pittsburgh" from the 1990s on new alternate and road uniforms, along with a gold outlined "P" on their caps.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Uniforms, Anniversaries and special events
Texas introduced a new powder blue jersey along with a powder blue hat. It also changed the "Texas" wordmark to "Rangers" wordmark on the white jersey and revealed a new red hat with the state of Texas on it with "TX."


2020 Major League Baseball season, Uniforms, Anniversaries and special events
Toronto added a new alternate based on its 1979–1988 powder blue road jerseys.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Uniforms, Anniversaries and special events
Washington added two new alternate hats and one alternate white jersey.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Uniforms, Anniversaries and special events
San Diego changed its primary colors from navy blue to brown and gold, the team's primary colors from 1969 to 1984.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Uniforms, Anniversaries and special events
St. Louis made changes to its logo as it appears on the caps.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Uniforms, Anniversaries and special events
The Cardinals and Royals wore Negro leagues throwbacks September 22. The Cardinals wore 1930 St. Louis Stars uniforms, and the Royals wore 1945 Kansas City Monarchs uniforms.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Venues
This is the Texas Rangers' first season at Globe Life Field, replacing Globe Life Park in Arlington where they played from 1994 to 2019. Their first game was July 24 against the Colorado Rockies.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Venues
The Miami Marlins converted Marlins Park from a natural grass surface to Shaw Sports B1K artificial turf and the field's fences will be moved in closer.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Venues
The Atlanta Braves' SunTrust Park was renamed Truist Park after SunTrust Banks merged with BB&T Bank to make Truist Financial.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Venues, Temporary relocation of the Toronto Blue Jays
On July 18, the Canadian federal government denied the Toronto Blue Jays exceptions to the Quarantine Act to play regular season home games at Rogers Centre this season.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Venues, Temporary relocation of the Toronto Blue Jays
Although they were allowed to conduct training camp with stricter protocols than those mandated by MLB, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Marco Mendicino cited that repeated cross-border travel by players would carry a major risk due to the higher number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. Mendicino did not rule out the permission being granted for postseason games, depending on the status of the pandemic in the U.S. by then, however the Blue Jays would not have any home postseason games.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Venues, Temporary relocation of the Toronto Blue Jays
On July 20, the Pittsburgh Pirates offered the use of PNC Park as a site for Blue Jays home games. However, health officials in Pennsylvania denied permission for this arrangement, citing concerns over additional travel to and from Pittsburgh amid an increase in local cases.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Venues, Temporary relocation of the Toronto Blue Jays
On July 24, the Blue Jays announced that they would play the majority of their home games at Sahlen Field in Buffalo, New York, home of the Jays' AAA affiliate, the Buffalo Bisons. The Jays' first game in Buffalo was August 11 against the Miami Marlins. The Jays' first two home series against the Washington Nationals and Philadelphia Phillies were relocated to the visiting teams' venues, Nationals Park and Citizens Bank Park, respectively, with the Jays as designated home team. However, the Phillies series was postponed and made up in Buffalo.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Broadcast rights, Television, National
This is the seventh year of the current eight-year deals with Fox, ESPN, and TBS. Fox was to televise the MLB at Field of Dreams game on August 13. FS1 televised games on Tuesday nights and on Saturdays both during the afternoon and night. ESPN televised games on its flagship telecast Sunday Night Baseball as well as Monday and Wednesday nights. Fox and ESPN Sunday Night Baseball telecasts were exclusive; all other national telecasts were subject to local blackout.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Broadcast rights, Television, National
TBS televised one AL Wild Card Series, both American League Division Series matchups and the American League Championship Series. ESPN televised seven of the eight Wild Card Series with live look-ins and alternate broadcasts on ESPN+. On September 28, it was announced that ABC would broadcast at least four of ESPN's Wild Card Series games, marking the first time a national MLB game had aired on the network since 1995 (via the ill-fated The Baseball Network arrangement). FS1 and MLB Network will televise both National League Division Series matchups. Fox and FS1 televised the National League Championship Series, and the World Series was be on Fox for the 21st straight year.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Broadcast rights, Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on production
In order to reduce avoidable travel and the amount of personnel on-site for each game, most MLB broadcasters commentated away games remotely from either their broadcaster's studio, or their home stadium's broadcast booths. MLB safety protocols mandated remote broadcasts for away games on television, but radio broadcasters were allowed to be present on-site for away games if they so chose. Some teams had their commentators on-site for home games only, and called away games from their studio.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Broadcast rights, Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on production
Furthermore, the home team's local television rightsholder served as the host broadcaster for each game, providing a neutral video feed to media partners (including the away team's local rightsholder, and in some cases, a national broadcaster), which added commentary, graphics, and other surrounding coverage for their audience. MLB Network assisted with providing and using existing infrastructure for this arrangement. Audio from Sony Interactive Entertainment's MLB: The Show video game franchise was used as artificial crowd noise for all games, and was played over the stadiums' audio systems on-site.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Broadcast rights, Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on production
Fox announced plans to use augmented reality "virtual fans" in its games, while ESPN leveraged experience from its remote broadcasts of KBO League games over the suspended pre-season.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Broadcast rights, Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on production
The pandemic also led to changes in broadcast arrangements for several teams:


2020 Major League Baseball season, Retirements
The following players retired during the 2020 season and before the start of 2021 campaign:


2020 Major League Baseball season, Retired numbers
Due to the delayed start of the season caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the following retirement ceremonies have been postponed. They will be rescheduled.


2020 Major League Baseball season, Major League Baseball teams revenue losses for 2020
For 2020 Team Marketing Report has calculated $5 billion in game day losses for Major League Baseball as a result of not having fans.


2020 Major League Lacrosse season
The 2020 Major League Lacrosse season was the 20th season of Major League Lacrosse. Each of the six teams were slated to play a ten-game regular season starting on May 30, until the COVID-19 pandemic suspended the season. On July 2, the league announced teams would play a five-game regular season over the course of a quarantined week in Annapolis, Maryland at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, the home of the Chesapeake Bayhawks. The regular season was scheduled to begin play on Saturday, July 18 with a four-team postseason the next weekend on July 25–26.


2020 Major League Lacrosse season
The Bayhawks entered the season as defending champions. They claimed their sixth title after defeating the Denver Outlaws, 10–9 in the 2019 Steinfeld Cup Game at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Denver.


2020 Major League Lacrosse season
For the second consecutive offseason, the landscape of the league changed dramatically. On January 14, the league announced the switch from a franchise model to a single-entity structure, meaning they will operate all six teams in 2020. On February 10, the league ceased operations of the Dallas Rattlers and moved the players and team staff to a new franchise, the Connecticut Hammerheads. The next week, the league ceased operations of the Atlanta Blaze and relocated the roster and coaches to relaunch the Philadelphia Barrage.


2020 Major League Lacrosse season
On the last evening of the shortened regular season, an unnamed player reported to team officials exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19. All league players were tested the next day. In result, the semifinal games on July 25 were canceled and the Bayhawks and Hammerheads, who were scheduled to play in the semifinal round, backed out of the postseason. The league announced the canceled semifinal game between the top seed Denver Outlaws and fourth seed and Boston Cannons would be pushed to July 26 and act as the championship game. Boston defeated Denver 13–10 to claim their second championship in franchise history.


2020 Major League Lacrosse season
On December 16, 2020, the league announced that it had merged with its competitor, Premier Lacrosse League.


2020 Major League Lacrosse season, Broadcast
Shortly after the league informed fans of its plans for a shortened season, it was announced that all 18 games would be broadcast on the ESPN family of networks. Two regular season games were aired on ESPN2 on July 19 while the championship game on July 26 aired on ESPN's flagship station. All other games would stream on ESPN+ and would be available to over 100 countries via ESPN Player. Canadian viewers were able to watch every game via TSN.


2020 Major League Lacrosse season, Collegiate Draft
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a virtual draft was held on May 4, consisting of eight rounds and 48 total picks. The New York Lizards selected faceoff specialist TD Ierlan with the first overall pick. However the next day, Ierlan announced he would be returning to Yale in 2021 after the pandemic-shortened 2020 NCAA season. Second overall pick, Michael Kraus, an attack from Virginia, signed a two-year contract with the Connecticut Hammerheads on May 14.


2020 Major League Lacrosse season, Playoffs
After positive COVID-19 test results among players, the Connecticut Hammerheads (second seed) and Chesapeake Bayhawks (third seed) backed out of the postseason.


2020 Major League Rugby season
The 2020 Major League Rugby season was the third season of Major League Rugby, the professional rugby union competition sanctioned by USA Rugby. The regular season schedule was released on September 23, 2019, and the regular season itself began on February 8, 2020.


2020 Major League Rugby season
Three teams made their debut in 2020: the New England Free Jacks, Old Glory DC, and Rugby ATL. The Seattle Seawolves are the defending champions, having won their second consecutive title last year.


2020 Major League Rugby season
On March 12, 2020, MLR announced the season would go on hiatus immediately for 30 days due to increasing local social distancing restrictions amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. One week later, MLR announced that the season was officially cancelled.


2020 Major League Rugby season, Teams and format
With the addition of three teams for the 2020 season, Major League Rugby moved to a two-conference format. For the regular season, each team was to play against the other teams in their conference twice each and against every team in the opposite conference once each for a total of 16 games.


2020 Major League Rugby season, Teams and format
The playoffs expanded from four teams in 2019 to six teams in 2020, with the top three teams from each conference qualifying. The second- and third-placed team from each conference were to play each other in the conference semifinals, with the winner moving on to play the first-placed team in the conference finals. The winners of the conference finals would have the played against each other in the final for the championship.


2020 Major League Rugby season, Regular season, Standings
Green background indicates teams in position for the Conference FinalsBlue background indicates teams in position for the Conference Semi-Finals (CH) Champions. (RU) Runners-up. (SF) Losing semi-finalists. Last Updated: March 7, 2020


2020 Major League Rugby season, Regular season, Matches
The following are the matches for the 2020 Major League Rugby regular season:


2020 Major League Rugby season, Regular season, Matches
Updated to match(es) played on March 8, 2020Colors: Blue: home team win; Yellow: draw; Red: away team win.


2020 Major League Rugby season, Playoffs
The top three teams from each conference would have qualified for the playoffs had the season not been cancelled. The top team in each conference earns a bye week while the second and third place team play in a conference semifinal.


2020 Major League Rugby season, Player statistics, Top scorers
The top ten try and point scorers during the 2020 Major League Rugby season were:


2020 Major League Rugby season, MLR Virtual
Following the cancellation of the 2020 season, the MLR announced they would host a tournament, with each team, playing Rugby20. The teams would enter a pool to select which nation they would play as. The MLR also announced that all of the MLR teams would be raising Feeding America’s COVID-19 Response Fund. All of the matches would be streamed on the league's Twitch account.


2020 Major League Rugby season, MLR Draft
The 1st ever Major League Rugby collegiate draft was held this season in 2020. Rugby players are eligible for the draft after 3 years in college or 21 years of age. Also, free agents can try out to join rugby union teams at 18 years old.


2020 Major League Soccer season
The 2020 Major League Soccer season was the 25th season of Major League Soccer (MLS), the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. The regular season began on February 29, 2020, and was originally planned to end on October 4, 2020. The MLS Cup Playoffs were planned to begin later that month and would end with MLS Cup 2020 on November 7.


2020 Major League Soccer season
On March 12, 2020, the season entered a lengthy suspension due to the COVID-19 pandemic in North America, following the cancellation of several matches. On May 1, the league announced that players would be allowed to resume individual outdoor training at MLS facilities on May 6. The COVID-19 pandemic was the first interruption of regular season play since the 2001 MLS season, in which many late regular season games were canceled due to the September 11 attacks.


2020 Major League Soccer season
On June 10, MLS announced that a bracket format dubbed the "MLS is Back Tournament" would begin July 8 at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Walt Disney World, and end with the final on August 11. The tournament was eventually won by the Portland Timbers, who as a result earned a berth in the 2021 CONCACAF Champions League. The regular season later resumed a day after the tournament finished, and concluded on November 8. The playoffs began on November 20, 2020, with MLS Cup 2020 now being played on December 12.


2020 Major League Soccer season
The 2020 season saw the addition of two expansion clubs, Inter Miami CF and Nashville SC, which took Major League Soccer to 26 total teams. Nashville SC was initially placed in the Western Conference, for a 13-13 team balance, despite Nashville being to the east of the western most Eastern Conference team, Chicago Fire. However, after the MLS Is Back Tournament, COVID-19 difficulties led to MLS limiting teams to matches with teams in geographic proximity, and as a result Nashville was moved to the Eastern conference due to geography.


2020 Major League Soccer season
This led to an imbalance, with 14 teams in the Eastern Conference and 12 in the Western Conference. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, this season was planned to be the first MLS season in which each team did not play every other team at least once, but, due to the pandemic, the schedule was heavily modified and most teams only played other teams within a regional geographic bubble. During the regular season around September and toward the end of the season, COVID-19 cross-border restrictions imposed by the Canadian government forced the Canadian MLS teams to play home matches in the United States.


2020 Major League Soccer season
Seattle Sounders FC were the defending champions, having defeated Toronto FC in MLS Cup 2019, while Los Angeles FC were the defending Supporters' Shield winners.


2020 Major League Soccer season
Philadelphia Union won the Supporters' Shield on the final day of the regular season, the first major trophy in the club's history.


2020 Major League Soccer season
Columbus Crew SC defeated defending champions Seattle Sounders FC in MLS Cup 2020 3–0 to win a second MLS Cup title, and their first since 2008.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Teams, Stadiums and locations
An additional stadium was renamed prior to the 2020 postseason:


2020 Major League Soccer season, Teams, Stadiums and locations
Expansion team Nashville SC began the season in the MLS Western Conference. As part of the announcement of the MLS is Back Tournament, MLS confirmed that for one season only, Nashville would transfer to the MLS Eastern Conference which thereby expanded to 14 teams for the season, with the Western Conference reduced to 12. Due to travel restrictions between US and Canada the three Canadian teams were relocated to temporary stadiums in the United States starting September 20.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Regular season, Format
The 2020 regular season began on February 29, 2020, and was originally scheduled to conclude on October 4, 2020. The league was originally divided into two conferences of 13 teams, with each playing a 34-game schedule with 17 each of home and away matches. Each team would play their intra-conference opponents twice – once home and once away for a total of 24 matches – and one match against 10 of the members of the opposite conference. The 2020 season was the first MLS season in which each team did not play every other team at least once.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Regular season, Format
The MLS is Back Tournament introduced three regular season matches in the group stage and the knockout stage that did not count towards regular season standings. After the tournament, the "first phase" of the regular schedule restart had teams playing in their home markets against only conference opponents for six matches with the intent of finishing a 23-match season. Some teams were allowed to play in front of a limited audience of spectators.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Regular season, Format
The exceptions in the first phase were that the Canadian clubs would play six matches between themselves due to prohibited travel to the United States and that FC Dallas and Nashville SC would play an additional three matches between themselves to make up for the fact that they could not play in the MLS is Back Tournament.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Regular season, Format
On September 11, the league announced the "second phase" of the restart with three more matches for each team. In this phase, Canadian and U.S. teams once again played each other but only within their own geographic bubble. This phase included two away games and one (designated home) game at a neutral venue for each of the Canadian teams; with Vancouver, Montreal, and Toronto hosting matches in Portland, Harrison, and Hartford, respectively.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Regular season, Format
On October 17, following a decision by the ISC (Independent Supporters Council), it was announced that the Supporters' Shield would not be awarded to the best regular season team in 2020. In an official announcement, the Supporters' Shield Foundation stated, "After much consideration and discussion, the Supporters' Shield Foundation has decided to forego awarding the Supporters' Shield for the 2020 season. This is not an easy decision to make. With the inability for supporters to be in attendance and fill their stadiums with passion, however, we feel as though the current climate goes against the spirit of the Shield." However, following backlash from members across the MLS community, on October 23 the foundation reversed the decision and reinstated the Shield.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Regular season, Format
On October 29, the league announced that the final regular season standings and playoff qualification would be determined by points per game rather than by overall points. This was due to eight MLS clubs, all in the Western Conference, being unable to play all of their scheduled 23 regular season matches in time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Seven postponed matches were cancelled altogether in order for the playoffs to be able to start on the scheduled date.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Regular season, Format
The regular season concluded with Decision Day on November 8, after which an expanded 18-team playoff began on November 20 and concluded with MLS Cup 2020 on December 12. Eight teams from the Western Conference and six teams from the Eastern Conference automatically qualified for the playoffs; teams finishing in positions 7–10 in the Eastern Conference competed in a play-in round for the final two first round playoff spots.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Regular season, Overall table
The leading team in this table wins the Supporters' Shield.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Playoffs
Note: The higher-seeded team hosted matches in the first three rounds. The team with the better regular season record hosted the final. Source:


2020 Major League Soccer season, Attendance
Due to the pandemic, some games early in the season were played with low attendance, and games later in the season were played without fans, or with artificially reduced attendance. Individual teams could set their own attendance limits based on their local, regional and state regulations during the pandemic.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Attendance, Average home attendances
Games without fans are not counted in averages or games played.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Attendance, Average home attendances
Note: Several additional matches had fans in attendance, but official figures have not yet been reported: Sporting Kansas City (8 home matches), Orlando City (8), FC Dallas (2), Philadelphia Union (3), Real Salt Lake (1), and Inter Miami CF (1).


2020 Major League Soccer season, Attendance, COVID-19 restrictions
Following the resumption of league play, some teams played either behind closed doors or with limited capacity based on local and state regulations.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Player movement, Collective bargaining agreement
On February 6, 2020, MLS and the MLS Players Association agreed to a new five-year collective bargaining agreement (CBA) which will last through the 2024 season. The primary issues negotiated were increased player spending, expanded free agency, and more charter travel.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Player movement, Collective bargaining agreement
The new collective bargaining agreement saw the league increase player spending to around $11.6 million per club by 2024, with both senior and reserve minimum salaries receiving increases throughout the deal as well as player bonuses for winning games and tournaments. The league also reduced Targeted Allocation Money by redistributing it into General Allocation Money. In addition, the players would earn a share in any increases in the league's new media deal in 2023.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Player movement, Collective bargaining agreement
The Players Association also negotiated a significantly lower threshold for free agency, which was previously set at 28 years of age with eight years of service time in the league. Under the new agreement, the free agency requirement for players was set at 24 years of age, with five years of service time. The number of charter flights allowed for each team was increased from four legs to eight one-way trips in 2020, with future allowances up to 16 one-way trips by 2024. Each MLS team was also required to charter flights for all MLS Cup Playoffs matches and CONCACAF Champions League matches.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Player movement, SuperDraft
At the MLS SuperDraft in January every year, Major League Soccer teams select players who have graduated from college or otherwise been signed by the league. The first two rounds of the 2020 MLS SuperDraft took place on January 9, 2020, and, unlike previous drafts, was held without a major event ceremony and was instead streamed on Twitter via ESPN. The third and fourth rounds were held via conference call on January 13.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Player movement, SuperDraft
Inter Miami CF and Nashville SC, as expansion clubs, held the first two spots in the SuperDraft. Clemson Tigers forward Robbie Robinson was selected with the first-overall pick by Inter Miami.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Player movement, Allocation ranking
The allocation ranking was the mechanism used to determine which MLS club had first priority to acquire a player who was in the MLS allocation list. The MLS allocation list contained select U.S. national team players and players transferred outside of MLS garnering a transfer fee of at least $500,000. The allocations were ranked in reverse order of finish for the 2019 season, taking playoff performance into account.


2020 Major League Soccer season, Player movement, Allocation ranking
Once the club used its allocation ranking to acquire a player, it dropped to the bottom of the list. A ranking could be traded provided that part of the compensation received in return was another club's ranking. At all times each club was assigned one ranking. The rankings reset at the end of each MLS season.


2020 Major League Soccer season, MLS is Back Tournament
To prevent an outbreak of COVID-19 occurring during the season, a bracket tournament, dubbed the "MLS is Back Tournament", was announced on June 10. The tournament took place behind closed doors at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex located in the Walt Disney World Resort, in Bay Lake, Florida, with the regular season slated to begin following the tournament. The group stage of the tournament counted towards the regular season.


2020 Major League Soccer season, MLS is Back Tournament
MLS announced its plan to restart the 2020 season with all 26 MLS clubs competing in the MLS is Back Tournament at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida beginning July 8. The tournament, which was played without fans in attendance, provided.a compelling way for MLS to resume its 25th season. On July 6, 2020, FC Dallas withdrew from the tournament due to ten players and one staff member of the club testing positive for COVID-19, after their opening match was initially postponed. On July 9, 2020, Nashville SC were also withdrawn from the tournament after nine players of the club tested positive for the virus, after their opening match was initially postponed.


2020 Major League Soccer season, MLS is Back Tournament
Each team played three group stage matches, and those results counted in the 2020 MLS regular season standings. After 16 consecutive days of group stage matches, the top two teams from each group along with the four best third-place finishers, moved on to the knockout stage. The knockout stage included a round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals, and the championship match which took place on August 11. Matches tied at the end of regulation in the knockout phase proceeded directly to a penalty shoot-out.


2020 Major League Soccer season, MLS is Back Tournament
As MLS is Back Tournament winners, the Portland Timbers earned a spot in the 2021 CONCACAF Champions League. They replaced the berth previously awarded to the MLS regular season points leader in the conference opposite of the Supporters’ Shield winner.


2020 Major League Soccer season, MLS is Back Tournament
In addition to matches that counted in the regular season standings and the Champions League berth, players had the opportunity to earn additional bonuses as part of a $1.1 million prize pool.


2020 Makassar mayoral election
The 2020 Makassar mayoral election was held on 9 December 2020, as part of the 2020 simultaneous local elections in Indonesia. It is a repeat of the previous election held in 2018, an uncontested election where the none of the above option won a majority. The 2020 election will see the previous incumbent mayor, Mohammad Ramdhan Pomanto, the 2018 single candidate Munafri Arifuddin, run as mayor along with former deputy mayor Syamsu Rizal and former East Luwu regent Irman Yasin Limpo. Pomanto managed to beat the other three candidates to secure a second term after winning 41.3 percent of votes.


2020 Makassar mayoral election, Background
The 2018 mayoral elections in Makassar were initially slated to pit incumbent Mohammad Ramdhan Pomanto against challenger Munafri Arifuddin, however, following a court ruling, Pomanto was disqualified, due to alleged abuse of office to benefit in the election. Despite this, Arifuddin was still required to gain a majority of the votes, with a none of the above option being available in the ballot, and he ended up losing to said option by a margin of some 36,000 votes, the first case of a NOTA victory in Indonesian electoral history. The election was hence repeated, with registration for candidates being reopened and the election being held as part of the 2020 simultaneous local elections. Both Pomanto and Arifuddin were permitted to run as candidates as well.


2020 Makassar mayoral election, Results
Pomanto won the election after winning 41.3 percent of votes, placing first in 14 out of 15 districts of Makassar.


2020 Malawi netball team tour of South Africa
The Malawi national netball team toured South Africa in November 2020 for a three-match series against the South Africa national netball team. The series was won by South Africa, who won all three of the matches.


2020 Malawian presidential election
Presidential elections were held in Malawi on 23 June 2020, having originally been scheduled for 19 May and later 2 July. They followed the annulment of the results of the 2019 presidential elections, in which Peter Mutharika of the Democratic Progressive Party had received the most votes.


2020 Malawian presidential election
The result of the re-run elections was a victory for Lazarus Chakwera of the Malawi Congress Party, who defeated Mutharika by  margin of 59% to 40%.


2020 Malawian presidential election, Background
In the May 2019 general elections, incumbent President Peter Mutharika of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) was re-elected with 39% of the vote, defeating Lazarus Chakwera of the Malawi Congress Party (35%) and Saulos Chilima of the  United Transformation Movement (20%). The DPP also remained the largest party in the National Assembly, winning 62 of the 193 seats. However, the presidential election was challenged in court by Chakwera and Chilima, and in February 2020 the Constitutional Court annulled the presidential election results, citing evidence of irregularities, and ordered fresh elections be held within 150 days.


2020 Malawian presidential election, Background
Parliament passed the Parliamentary and Presidential Elections Act (PPEA) Amendment Bill on 24 February, setting 19 May as the date for the new presidential elections and extending the terms of MPs and local councillors by one year to allow for harmonised presidential, parliamentary and local elections in 2025. In March the Malawi Electoral Commission announced a new election date, 2 July, one day before the 150 day limit to hold elections set by the Constitutional Court. On 21 May the Legal Affairs committee of parliament endorsed for fresh presidential elections to be held on 23 June rather than 2 July.


2020 Malawian presidential election, Candidates
Lazarus Chakwera and Peter Kuwani filed their respective nominations on 6 May 2020. Peter Mutharika filed his nomination the following day, with Atupele Muluzi as his running mate.


2020 Malawian presidential election, Electoral system
As a result of the Constitutional Court ruling, the President of Malawi will be elected using the two-round system, replacing the former first-past-the-post system used in 2019.


2020 Malawian presidential election, Opinion polls
A poll conducted by IPOR Malawi showed that 53% of respondents expected Lazarus Chakwera to win the election, while 31% expected Mutharika to win.


2020 Malawian presidential election, Opinion polls
On a national level, according to the polls, 51% would vote for Chakwera, while 33% for Mutharika and 0.2% for Peter Kuwani.


2020 Malawian presidential election, Opinion polls
Another poll by Afrobarometer suggested that Chakwera was most likely to win the election.


2020 Malawian presidential election, Reactions
Opposition figures in other African countries have been reportedly congratulating Chakwera's victory, including the leader of Zimbabwe's Movement for Democratic Change, Nelson Chamisa, leader of Tanzania's Alliance for Change and Transparency, Zitto Kabwe, former leader of South Africa's Democratic Alliance, Mmusi Maimane, leader of Zambia's National Democratic Congress Chishimba Kambwili, and aspiring presidential candidate for the 2021 Ugandan general election Henry Tumukunde.


2020 Malawian presidential election, Aftermath
In August 2021 the DPP appealed to the Supreme Court to annul the election results on the basis that in June 2020 the High Court had cancelled the appointments of four DPP members who had been appointed to the Malawi Electoral Commission prior to the elections. The DPP claimed that this meant the 2020 elections had been managed by incorrectly appointed members, and was therefore null and void.


2020 Malaysia Cup
The 2020 Malaysia Cup (Malay: Piala Malaysia 2020) was the 94th edition of Malaysia Cup tournament organised by Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) and Malaysian Football League (MFL). Winners would qualify directly to 2021 AFC Cup group stage. Since the tournament had been cancelled, the spot was passed down to the third-placed team in the League.


2020 Malaysia Cup
On 12 November 2020, Malaysian Football League (MFL) confirmed that the tournament would not resume and be cancelled immediately. That mean's closes the season for Malaysian football in 2020 following government's rejection of MFL's appeal, including with large parts of the country in Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO) due to COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia.


2020 Malaysia Cup, Format
In the competition, the top eleven teams from the 2020 Malaysia Super League were joined by the top five teams from the 2020 Malaysia Premier League. On 28 October 2020, Sabah FA has been excluded from the competition due to the failure to obtain the National Security Council's permission to leave the state of Sabah, which has been placed under a COVID-19 lockdown.


2020 Malaysia Cup, Format
Recently, the Malaysian Football League (MFL) format for the 2020 Malaysia Cup has been changed following the COVID-19 pandemic that hit the country. Group stage competitions were cancelled and replaced with 16 teams by knockout, including matches in the quarter-finals and semi-finals. This competition would feature a format change: the round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals and final would be played in a single-leg format. The matches were played behind closed doors, though spectators could have been allowed following a review of the situation and the decisions of the national and local government.


2020 Malaysia Cup, Round and draw dates
The draw for the 2020 Malaysia Cup will be held on 1 November 2020.


2020 Malaysia Cup, Knockout stage
The competition would be played as a mini-tournament style with remaining fixtures to be played as single legged ties. All remaining ties of the competition were played behind closed doors due to the remaining presence of the COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia.


2020 Malaysia Cup, Round of 16
The matches were played from 6 to 8 November 2020.


2020 Malaysia Cup, Quarter-finals
The matches should have played from 12 to 13 November 2020, but it be cancelled immediately by the MFL on 12 November 2020 following government's rejection of MFL's appeal due to COVID-19 Pandemic hit that country.


2020 Malaysia Cup, Final
The final were played on 22 November 2020 at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.


2020 Malaysia Cup, Statistics, Clean sheets
Players sorted first by clean sheets, then by last name.


2020 Malaysia FA Cup
The 2020 Malaysia FA Cup is the 31st season of the Malaysia FA Cup, a knockout competition for Malaysia's state football association and clubs. The winners will be assured a place for the 2021 AFC Cup group stage.


2020 Malaysia FA Cup, Qualified teams
The following teams are qualified for the competition. Reserve teams are excluded.


2020 Malaysia FA Cup, Preliminary
Key: (1) = Liga Super; (2) = Liga Premier; (3) = Liga M3; (4) = Liga M4


2020 Malaysia FA Cup, Preliminary
The draw for the preliminary round was held on 29 January 2020 at 15:00 involving 40 teams from Liga M3 and Liga M4. 9 teams from the Liga M3 and M4 have won byes in the first round. The matches will be held on February 15 and 16, 2020.


2020 Malaysia FA Cup, Round 1 (FA1)
Key: (1) = Liga Super; (2) = Liga Premier; (3) = Liga M3; (4) = Liga M4


2020 Malaysia FA Cup, Round 1 (FA1)
The draw for the 1st round was held on 17 February 2020 at 15:00 involving 24 teams from Liga M3 and Liga M4.


2020 Malaysia FA Cup, Round 2 (FA2)
Key: (1) = Liga Super; (2) = Liga Premier; (3) = Liga M3; (4) = Liga M4


2020 Malaysia FA Cup, Round 2 (FA2)
The draw for the 2nd round was held on 24 February 2020 at 15:45 involving 32 teams from Liga Super, Liga Premier, Liga M3 and Liga M4.


2020 Malaysia M3 League
The 2020 Malaysia M3 League is the 2nd season of Malaysia M3 League  the third-tier semi-professional football league in Malaysia since its establishment in 2019.


2020 Malaysia M3 League
The season started on 7 March and concluded on 17 November 2020.


2020 Malaysia M3 League
On 13 March, it was announced that the league would be suspended indefinitely, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.


2020 Malaysia M3 League
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, this season's competition was formally abandoned on 8 June 2020, with all results from the season being expunged, and no promotion or relegation taking place to, from, or within the competition.


2020 Malaysia M3 League, Establishment and format
This new season saw the format restructuring by the AFL. On 19 January 2020, the AFL has announced the format changes for the Malaysia M3 League and Malaysia M4 League in preparation for the transition of the amateur team to semi-professionals by 2021.


2020 Malaysia M3 League, Establishment and format
The league will kick-off with 20 teams and to be split into 2 groups, an increase of 6 teams compared to 14 teams in the previous edition. The top 12 teams with a good financial record will remain in the 2021 Malaysia M3 League while the remaining 8 teams will advance to the Malaysia M4 League which will be formed with the 4 best teams 2020 Malaysia M4 League. AFL-recognized state and private leagues, originally part of the League The 2020 Malaysia M4 League will be part of the Malaysia M5 League in 2021.


2020 Malaysia M3 League, Personnel and sponsoring, Coaching changes
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2020 Malaysia M3 League, Foreign players
Malaysia M3 League clubs can sign a maximum of four foreign players in the 2020 season, up from two as compared to 2019. However, two of them has to be 20 years old or younger on 1 January 2020.


2020 Malaysia M3 League, Foreign players
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2020 Malaysia M3 League, Season statistics, Hat-tricks
4 Player scored 4 goals5 Player scored 5 goals(H) – Home team(A) – Away team


2020 Malaysia Masters
The 2020 Malaysia Masters (officially known as the Perodua Malaysia Masters 2020 for sponsorship reasons) was a badminton tournament that took place at the Axiata Arena in Malaysia from 7 to 12 January 2020 and had a total purse of $400,000.


2020 Malaysia Masters, Tournament
The 2020 Malaysia Masters was the first tournament of the 2020 BWF World Tour and also part of the Malaysia Masters championships, which had been held since 2009. This tournament was organized by the Badminton Association of Malaysia and sanctioned by the BWF.


2020 Malaysia Masters, Tournament, Venue
This international tournament was held at the Axiata Arena in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.


2020 Malaysia Masters, Tournament, Point distribution
Below is the point distribution for each phase of the tournament based on the BWF points system for the BWF World Tour Super 500 event.


2020 Malaysia Masters, Tournament, Prize money
The total prize money for this tournament was US$400,000. Distribution of prize money was in accordance with BWF regulations.


2020 Malaysia Premier Futsal League
2020 Malaysia Premier Futsal League is the 2nd season of the Malaysia Premier Futsal League. It is the Malaysian professional futsal league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 2004. Selangor are the defending champions.


2020 Malaysia Premier Futsal League, Teams
For 2020 season, a total of 12 clubs compete in league.


2020 Malaysia Premier League
The 2020 Malaysia Premier League was the 17th season of the Malaysia Premier League, the second-tier professional football league in Malaysia since its establishment in 2004.


2020 Malaysia Premier League
The season started on 29 February and should end on 20 July 2020. However, on 13 March, it was announced that the league would be suspended indefinitely, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. On 1 May, it was announced that the league would resume in September dependent on the situation at the time. Due to time constraints, the home-and-away format for the Super League and the Premier League has been scrapped. Teams played each other only once, meaning the champions of the Super League and Premier League were decided after eleven rounds of matches.


2020 Malaysia Premier League, Team changes
A total of 12 teams contested the league, including 7 sides from the 2019 season, 3 relegated from the 2019 Malaysia Super League and 2 promoted from the 2019 Malaysia M3 League.


2020 Malaysia Premier League, Personnel and sponsoring
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2020 Malaysia Premier League, Personnel and sponsoring, Coaching changes
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2020 Malaysia Premier League, Foreign players
The number of foreign players is restricted to four each team including at least one player from the AFC country.


2020 Malaysia Premier League, Foreign players
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2020 Malaysia Premier League, Season statistics, Clean sheets
Players sorted first by clean sheets, then by last name.


2020 Malaysia Super League
The 2020 Malaysia Super League (Malay: Liga Super Malaysia 2020), known as the CIMB Bank Liga Super Malaysia 2020 for sponsorship reasons, was the 17th season of the Malaysia Super League, the top-tier professional football league in Malaysia.


2020 Malaysia Super League
Johor Darul Ta'zim were the defending champions, having won their sixth title the previous season.


2020 Malaysia Super League
The first transfer window was from 16 January to 15 March 2020.


2020 Malaysia Super League
On 13 March 2020, it was announced that the league would be suspended indefinitely, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. On 1 May, it was announced that the league would resume in September dependent on the situation at the time. Due to time constraints, the home-and-away format has been scrapped. Teams played each other only once, meaning that the champion of the Super League was decided after eleven rounds of matches.


2020 Malaysia Super League, Teams, Changes from last season
Kuala Lumpur and PKNP are relegated to the Malaysia Premier League after finishing bottom and second-bottom respectively in last season's Malaysia Super League.


2020 Malaysia Super League, Teams, Changes from last season
Sabah and PDRM are promoted after securing their place as champions and 3rd-placed finishers in last season's Malaysia Premier League (runners-up Johor Darul Ta'zim II is ineligible for the Super League due to being the reserve team to Johor Darul Ta'zim).


2020 Malaysia Super League, Teams, Changes from last season
As PKNS has changed their status as the reserve team to Selangor, they are therefore replaced by the 5th-placed finishers of last season's Malaysia Premier League UiTM (4th-placed finishers Terengganu II is ineligible for the Super League due to being the reserve team to Terengganu FC).


2020 Malaysia Super League, Foreign players
Southeast Asia (SEA) players are required to have acquired at least 30 international caps for their senior national team with no period restriction on when they are earned while those who has less than 30 international caps will be subjected to MFL approval.


2020 Malaysia Super League, Foreign players
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one FIFA and non-FIFA nationality.


2020 Malaysia Super League, Positions by round
The table lists the positions of teams after each week of matches. In order to preserve chronological evolvements, any postponed matches are not included to the round at which they were originally scheduled, but added to the full round they were played immediately afterwards.


2020 Malaysian International Classic Race
The 2020 Malaysian International Classic Race was a road cycling one-day race that took place on 15 February 2020 in Malaysia, starting and finishing in Kuah, the capital of the Langkawi district in the state of Kedah. It was the inaugural edition of the Malaysian International Classic Race and was rated as a 1.1 event as a part of the 2020 UCI Asia Tour. This race was created initially as a one-off race to be a part of the festivities for the 25th anniversary of the Tour de Langkawi; however, organizers have expressed desires to make this race an annual event in the future.


2020 Malaysian International Classic Race
The duo of French rider Johan Le Bon of B&B Hotels–Vital Concept and Australian rider Jesse Ewart of Team Sapura Cycling attacked late in the race and managed to stay in front, with Le Bon emerging victorious in the two-up sprint. French rider Lucas De Rossi of Nippo–Delko–One Provence placed third after winning the reduced bunch sprint behind.


2020 Malaysian International Classic Race, Teams
Twenty-one teams, which consisted of one UCI WorldTeam, five UCI Professional Continental teams, fourteen UCI Continental teams, and one national team, were invited to the race. These teams were the same teams that had just competed in the 2020 Tour de Langkawi, which finished the previous day. Each team entered six riders, except for Androni Giocattoli–Sidermec and Nippo–Delko–One Provence, which each entered five, and Team BridgeLane and Utsunomiya Blitzen, which each entered four. Of the 120 riders who started the race, only 28 finished.


2020 Maldives FA Cup
The 2020 Maldives FA Cup was the 30th edition of the Maldives FA Cup, the top-tier knockout football tournament in Maldives organized by the Football Association of Maldives. The tournament returns after two years of absence. A total of eight teams compete in the tournament.


2020 Maldives FA Cup, Semi-finals
All football activities in Maldives were suspended indefinitely by the Football Association of Maldives due to COVID-19. Later it was decided the tournament would be cancelled and declared null and void.


2020 Maldivian FA Charity Shield
The 2020 Maldivian FA Charity Shield, (commonly known as the 2020 Milo Charity Shield due to sponsorship reasons) is the 11th Maldivian FA Charity Shield, an annual Maldivian football match played between the winners of the previous season's Dhivehi Premier League and FA Cup. The game was played between Maziya, champions of the 2020–21 Dhivehi Premier League, and runner-up Eagles, as the 2020 Maldives FA Cup  was cancelled and declared null and void due to the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic in the Maldives.


2020 Maldivian FA Charity Shield
This was the sixth appearance of Maziya in the FA Charity Shield, and debut appearance for Club Eagles. Maziya won thrice continuously in 2015, 2016 and 2017.


2020 Maldivian Second Division Football Tournament
Statistics of Second Division Football Tournament in the 2020 season.


2020 Maldivian Second Division Football Tournament
2018 Third Division Football Tournament champions Rock Street Sports Club decided not to play in second division despite promotion, relegating them to Maldivian Third Division Football Tournament.


2020 Maldivian Second Division Football Tournament
On 13 October 2019, President of Football Association of Maldives, Bassam Adeel Jaleel announced that Maldives Under 19 will compete in the Second Division Football Tournament from 2020 season onward.


2020 Maldivian Second Division Football Tournament
The winners of the semi-finals; Club Valencia and Super United Sports advance to the final, with gaining automatic promotion to the Dhivehi Premier League for the following season, as New Radiant Sports Club and Victory Sports Club both teams being suspended. Both New Radiant and Victory will have to play in the Second Division Football Tournament even if their suspension cast aside.


2020 Maldivian Second Division Football Tournament, Group stage
From each group, the top two teams will be advanced for the Semi-finals.


2020 Maldivian Second Division Football Tournament, Final Ranking
Per statistical convention in football, matches decided in extra time are counted as wins and losses, while matches decided by penalty shoot-out are counted as draws.


2020 Malian coup d'état
On 18 August 2020, elements of the Malian Armed Forces began a mutiny. Soldiers on pick-up trucks stormed the Soundiata military base in the town of Kati, where gunfire was exchanged before weapons were distributed from the armory and senior officers arrested. Tanks and armoured vehicles were seen on the town's streets, as well as military trucks heading for the capital, Bamako. The soldiers detained several government officials including President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta, who resigned and dissolved the government. This was the country's second coup in less than 10 years, following the 2012 coup d'état.


2020 Malian coup d'état, Background
Protests in Mali had been ongoing since 5 June, with protesters calling for the resignation of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta. Protesters were displeased with the government's management of the ongoing insurgency, alleged government corruption, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and a floundering economy. Eleven deaths and 124 injuries were reported during the protests.


2020 Malian coup d'état, Coup d'état
On the morning of 18 August 2020, soldiers began firing bullets into the air at a military base in Kati, a town 15 kilometres (9.3 miles) away from Bamako, the capital of Mali. After moving into the capital, the mutineers arrested Minister of Finance Abdoulaye Daffe, the Chief of Staff of the National Guard Mahamane Touré, and Moussa Timbiné, speaker of the National Assembly. The Prime Minister, Boubou Cissé, appealed for dialogue with the mutineers, acknowledging they held "legitimate frustrations".


2020 Malian coup d'état, Coup d'état
A mutiny leader later claimed that Keïta and Cissé had been arrested at the former's residence in Bamako; African Union Commission chairman Moussa Faki confirmed that Keïta, Cissé, and other officials had been arrested and called for their release. A spokesman for the M5-RFP opposition coalition welcomed their detention, describing it as a "popular insurrection".


2020 Malian coup d'état, Coup d'état
The officials were taken to the military camp in Kati where the uprising began. As news of the mutiny spread, hundreds of protesters gathered at Bamako's Independence Monument to demand Keïta's resignation. Protesters also set a building belonging to the Ministry of Justice ablaze.


2020 Malian coup d'état, Coup d'état
At the time, it was not clear how many soldiers took part in the coup, who initiated it or who would now take charge.


2020 Malian coup d'état, Aftermath
President Keïta resigned around midnight, while also dissolving the government and parliament. "I want no blood to be spilled to keep me in power," he added. Five colonels appeared in the TV broadcast to the nation, led by Colonel Assimi Goïta. They called themselves the National Committee for the Salvation of the People. The bodies of four people killed by gunfire and about 15 wounded, all likely hit by stray bullets, were brought into one of the city's main hospitals, said Elhadj Djimé Kanté, a spokesman for the hospital union. The coup leaders denied that anyone had been killed, but soldiers were constantly firing in the air, cheered on by crowds of young people.


2020 Malian coup d'état, Aftermath
Military leaders had ordered closure of all border crossings and imposed a night-time curfew. "As of today, 19 August 2020, all air and land borders are closed until further notice. A curfew is in place from 21:00 to 05:00 until further notice," Col-Major Ismaël Wagué, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Malian Air Force, said in a televised address. He also invited opposition groups to talks for fresh elections.


2020 Malian coup d'état, Aftermath
Opposition member Mahmoud Dicko announced that he is leaving politics as a result of a meeting between him and some of the soldiers that took part in the mutiny.


2020 Malian coup d'état, Aftermath
Coup leaders promised new elections within a "reasonable timeline," without specifying what that meant.


2020 Malian coup d'état, Aftermath
Keïta left the country in September for medical treatment in the United Arab Emirates. Keïta, 75 years old, was originally hospitalised in the capital a few days before leaving.


2020 Malian coup d'état, Aftermath
Experts chosen by Mali's new military chieftains have proposed a two-year interim government led by a president chosen by them, despite calls by Mali's neighbors for elections within a year. They suggest that the soldiers behind the coup nominate the interim president and vice president and propose the interim president choose the prime minister. Under the draft, the president would be from the civil or military sectors. The nominee must be between the ages of 35 and 75 and would not be allowed to run for election at the end of the transition. Right after the coup, military leaders promised to reinstate a civilian government and hold elections within a relatively short timeframe.


2020 Malian coup d'état, Aftermath
On 12 September 2020, the National Committee for the Salvation of the People (CNSP) agreed to an 18-month political transition to civilian rule.


2020 Malian coup d'état, Aftermath
On 21 September 2020 Bah Ndaw was named interim president by a group of 17 electors, with Goïta being appointed vice president. The government is supposed to preside over an interim period of 18 months. A spokesperson for political-religious leader Mahmoud Dicko praised his nomination as president. Leaders of the M5-RFP, active since the 2020 Malian protests, also signalled support. On 25 September the government was inaugurated.


2020 Malian coup d'état, Aftermath
On 18 January 2021, the transitional government announced that the CNSP had been disbanded. Although the initial agreement in September 2020 had stated that the CNSP junta would be dissolved as soon as the transitional government came to power, this had not yet taken place.


2020 Malian coup d'état, International reaction
Representatives of several countries condemned the coup, as did representatives of the African Union, European Union, and United Nations. Emmanuel Macron, the President of France, a country which has been involved in fighting an Islamist insurgency in its former colony since 2013, called for power to be returned to civilians and for arrested leaders to be freed. The United States cut off military aid to Mali on 21 August 2020.


2020 Malian coup d'état, International reaction
The United Nations Security Council unanimously approved a resolution condemning the coup and calling on the soldiers to return to their barracks and release all detainees without delay. Amnesty International also called for the release of the detainees. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) imposed sanctions on Mali and called on neighbouring states to close their land and air borders.


2020 Malian coup d'état, International reaction
On 25 August 2020, the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie suspended Mali from membership and called for the immediate release of Keïta.


2020 Malian coup d'état, International reaction
On 7 September 2020 at a summit in Niamey, Niger, regional bloc ECOWAS gave the Malian military rulers a deadline of 15 September to appoint a new civilian President and Prime Minister.


2020 Malian parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Mali on 29 March 2020, with a second round on 19 April. They were initially scheduled to be held on 25 November and 16 December 2018, but were moved to April 2019 and then to June 2019, before being postponed until 2020 by the Council of Ministers. The elections were marred by violence in the north and center of the country.


2020 Malian parliamentary election
These are the first elections to fill Mali’s 147-seat parliament since 2013.


2020 Malian parliamentary election
Thousands of Malians have died as the country suffered sporadic attacks by jihadists as well as cases of inter-ethnic violence since unrest began in 2012.


2020 Malian parliamentary election, Electoral system
The 147 members of the National Assembly are elected from 125 constituencies using the two-round system to serve five-year terms. In constituencies where there is more than one seat to be elected, block voting is used.


2020 Malian parliamentary election, Conduct
Leader of the opposition Soumaila Cissé was kidnapped on 26 March, three days prior to the elections. Village chiefs, election officials, and an election observer were kidnapped; there were death threats and a police station was ransacked according to the Coalition for the Observation of Elections in Mali, which had sent 1,600 observers. Nine people were killed when their vehicle hit a landmine on 29 March. Three soldiers were killed and three injured in another landmine on 30 March. An al-Qaeda-aligned group took responsibility for the bombings, as well as an attack on soldiers and the killing of a group of Dozo hunters on 27 March.


2020 Malian parliamentary election, Conduct
Some people were not able to vote on 19 April, and on 30 April the Constitutional Court overturned the results for 31 seats. Keita's Rally for Mali was given ten additional seats in Parliament, making it the largest bloc.


2020 Malian parliamentary election, Results
Parties formed different alliances in different constituencies, making it impossible to determine a national set of vote figures. The election continued a decades-long trend of turnout being under 40% in the country, and the first-round elections were marred by violence in the north and center of the country. The Voice of America reported voter turnout of only 12% in Bamako because of concerns about COVID-19, violence, and voter indifference.


2020 Malian parliamentary election, Aftermath
Opposition parties established the Mouvement du 5 juin - Rassemblement des forces patriotiques (in French) (June 5 Movement - Rally of Patriotic Forces) and thousands led by Mahmoud Dicko marched in protest on 5 June. Boubou Cisse was reappointed Prime Minister on 11 June, and massive protests calling for President Keita's resignation were held on 19 June.


2020 Malian parliamentary election, Aftermath
A coup forced the resignation of Keita and Dicko as well as the dissolution of parliament on August 19.


2020 Malian protests
Protests in Mali began on 5 June 2020 when protesters gathered in the streets of Bamako, calling for Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta to resign as president of Mali. The protests ended after a coup d'état on 18 August. Both the president and prime minister of Mali were detained that afternoon, and in the evening they announced their resignations.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, Background
Numerous factors led to the formation of the 5 June Movement and the August coup d’etat.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, Background
Tensions had been seething ever since irregularities were reported during the 2018 Malian presidential election. The on-going Mali War in the Tuareg-controlled northern region intensified the situation. Human Rights Watch (HRW) reports have documented army abuses against civilians in the central Mopti and Segou regions, dozens of attacks by armed groups in 2019 that resulted in 456 civilian deaths and hundreds of injuries. Another twelve people were killed due to dissident Fulani in Mopti attacks in April.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, Background
Dissidents also questioned the government's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. The first two cases were reported on 25 March 2020, and by the end of May, there were 1,265 cases and 77 deaths.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, The First round of the 2020 elections
After repeated postponements, the first round of the 2020 Parliamentary election was finally held on 29 March 2020. Opposition leader Soumaïla Cissé and members of his electoral team were kidnapped by jihadists three days before the election. He was released on 6 October. Polling stations were ransacked, village leaders were kidnapped, and a roadside bomb killed nine people including three soldiers on election day, 29 March. Voter turnout was only 12% in Bamako.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, The Second round of the 2020 elections
At least 25 soldiers were killed in an attack on a military base in the northern town of Bamba, Gao Region, on 6 April, and concerns about violence dominated the second round of the elections.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, The Second round of the 2020 elections
Incidents on 19 April prevented some people from casting votes, and on 30 April the Constitutional Court overturned the results in 31 districts, giving Rally for Mali, which is led by President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta, ten more seats than originally expected. Opposition parties led by Iman Mahmoud Dicko established the Mouvement du 5 juin - Rassemblement des forces patriotiques (in French) (5 June Movement - Rally of Patriotic Forces) on 30 May, and thousands took to the streets in protest on 5 June.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, The Second round of the 2020 elections
French forces fought the Battle of Talahandak, killing Abdelmalek Droukdel of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb near Tessalit, Kidal Region, 20 kilometres (12 mi) from the Mali-Algeria border.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, The Second round of the 2020 elections
Boubou Cisse was reappointed Prime Minister on 11 June, when he was instructed to form a new government.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, The Second round of the 2020 elections
Tens of thousands of Malians protested again on 19 June, demanding the resignation of President Keïta.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, The Second round of the 2020 elections
On 20 June, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) called for new elections to be held.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, The Second round of the 2020 elections
President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta and Imam Mahmoud Dicko met on 5 July, but the opposition continued to call for civil disobedience to force Keïta's resignation and the dissolution of Parliament.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, The Second round of the 2020 elections
Protests turned violent on 10 July. For the next three days, protesters in Bamako clashed with security forces, and security forces reportedly fired live rounds at the protesters, killing at least 11 and injuring 124.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, The Second round of the 2020 elections
On 23 July, Presidents Muhammadu Buhari (Nigeria), Mahamadou Issoufou (Niger), Nana Akufo-Addo (Ghana), Alassane Ouattara (Côte d'Ivoire), and Macky Sall (Senegal) arrived in Bamako to meet with President Keïta and opposition leaders after a failed ECOWAS mediation mission.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, The Second round of the 2020 elections
On 27 July, ECOWAS called for the creation of a unity government and warned of sanctions.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, The Second round of the 2020 elections
Nine new judges, said to be Keïta supporters, were appointed to the Constitutional Court on 10 August, in response to ECOWAS' demands for reform.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, The Second round of the 2020 elections
Thousands gathered in Independence Square in Bamako on 11 August, where they were met with tear gas and water cannons.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, Coup d’etat
Mutinying soldiers arrested President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta and Prime Minister Boubou Cissé after taking over a military camp near Bamako on the morning of 18 August.


2020 Malian protests, Timeline, Coup d’etat
Early in the morning of 19 August, President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta announced his resignation and dissolved parliament. Mahmoud Dicko announced that he was leaving politics. Colonel Assimi Goïta is appointed to head the new government, the Comité national pour le salut du peuple (in French) (National Committee for the Salvation of the People, CNSP).


2020 Maligawatta stampede
The Maligawatta stampede was an fatal incident which occurred on 21 May 2020, near a Muslim Jumma residence in Maligawatta, Colombo-10, amid lockdown and curfew which was imposed in the area due to COVID-19 pandemic in the country. The incident happened around 1:00pm while charity donation program was conducted to distribute money for the Maligawatta area residents on the eve of Ramadan.


2020 Maligawatta stampede, Incident
Nearly 300-400 people were reported to have gathered in a queue during a private charity donation program conducted by businessman Zarook Hajiyar based in Dehiwala with the purpose of distributing money at least Rs. 5000 per person for the area residents, especially to the poor. Around three women were killed due to the stampede and it was revealed that it happened due to the panic situation and careless behaviour among women. Nine people were severely injured including seven women and four women who were injured in the stampede have been reported to be in critical condition after being admitted to the Colombo National Hospital.


2020 Maligawatta stampede, Incident
Six suspects who were involved in relief distribution have been arrested mainly for conducting such an event amid coronavirus and for not maintaining proper hygienic measures, ignoring the ban on public gatherings. Suspects related to the incident were remanded until 4 June.