Three Democrats tested positive on Saturday and two more on Sunday. All of the lawmakers are fully vaccinated.
Five Democratic members of the Texas House of Representatives who traveled to Washington D.C. last week in an attempt to block the passage of Republican-sponsored voter restrictions have tested positive for Covid-19, the state House Democratic Caucus said Sunday.
The Texas House Democratic Caucus said in an emailed statement that it’s now providing daily COVID testing for the more than 50 lawmakers who fled Texas. So far, five delegation members have tested positive for COVID – and all are fully vaccinated.
The group of Democrats fled the Lone Star State to deny Republicans in the state legislature a quorum, which refers to the minimum number of lawmakers needed to carry out legislative business.
According to NBC News:
State Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer said in a statement Sunday he tested positive through a rapid antigen test. He said he had tested negative Friday and Saturday and that he was experiencing “extremely mild symptoms.”
Fischer is the only one of the two cases to come forward Sunday. Both had been fully vaccinated, the caucus said in a statement.Of the three other positive cases in the delegation, only Rep. Celia Israel came forward to identify herself. All three were also said to be fully vaccinated.
The caucus said it will now provide daily rapid tests for its members and their staffers who are in the nation’s Capitol.
“All of the HDC Members who tested positive are feeling good, with no symptoms or only mild symptoms,” the caucus said.
The lawmakers thereby obstructed Republicans’ attempt to pass election integrity legislation that the Democrats disliked.
They traveled by plane to Washington, D.C., garnering national attention, and were criticized for pictures that appeared to show them traveling without masks.
In total, more than 50 state lawmakers made the trip and were said to be tested after news of the first confirmed case broke last week.
The bill in question would strengthen voter ID requirements for mail-in ballots, which became a source of concern in the lead-up to, and in the aftermath of, the 2020 election.
It is unclear whether the obstruction attempt will be successful.
Texas’ Republican Gov. Greg Abbott has said he will continue to call for special sessions until the Democrats return. Abbott has also said the Democrats will be arrested when they arrive back in Texas.
The Republican governor hit back at the notion that the voting rights bill would make it harder to residents to vote in a tweet on Sunday.
Facts matter. Reckless rhetoric doesn’t.
The Texas election integrity bill doesn’t disenfranchise Texas voters.
It makes elections fair and uniform.
Anyone saying that the bill denies people the right to vote is simply lying. https://t.co/dkpxirug4F
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) July 18, 2021
The rise of the infections is caused by the new Delta variant that is said to be more contagious than of the COVID-19, the news reported that more cases of this new variant have been recorded specifically among the bolting Democrats that come throughout the U.S.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report stated that the numbers of confirmed cases around the U.S continue to increase. Data shows that new cases reach up to 26,306 from the current week that marks 69.3% compared to the previous week with the moving average of 15,541.
Sources: Fox News, NBC News, Reuters