Minnesota State Fair canceled due to COVID-19 pandemic

MINNEAPOLIS — The 2020 Minnesota State Fair was canceled Friday due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The fair's governing board voted unanimously to cancel the event after the event's general Jerry Hammer, said it was impossible to proceed.

“We all love the fair. And that’s why we can’t have a fair this year,“ Hammer said.

He told the board that if they were somehow able to stage the fair despite the pandemic, it wouldn't look like a normal fair. He said major entertainers are already leery of going out on tour, and some have already canceled their performances for the year. And he said other vendors and exhibitors weren't on board with proceeding.

This is the sixth time the Minnesota State Fair has been canceled. The last was in 1946 due to a polio epidemic.