Rep. Cedric Richmond, an incoming top White House aide to President-elect Joe Biden, is quarantining after testing positive for COVID-19.
The Democrat from Louisiana traveled to Georgia this week to support Biden’s campaign events for the state’s Democratic Senate candidates but wasn’t in close contact with the next president, according to Biden’s transition team.
“Richmond’s interactions with the President-elect happened in open air, were masked and totaled less than 15 consecutive minutes, the CDC’s time-frame for close contact,” transition spokeswoman Kate Bedingfield said in a statement.
The incoming White House communications director added, “Richmond traveled to Georgia on his own and not with the President-elect.”
The statement said Richmond first tested positive on Wednesday, which is when Biden’s team started contact tracing. Other staffers exposed include two people who drove his car in Atlanta. The congressman will quarantine for 14 days and will need to produce two negative tests before he returns to work in person.
Biden tested negative for COVID-19 earlier Thursday and last month announced Richmond as his White House public engagement director.
