Incoming White House adviser Congressman Cedric Richmond has tested positive for COVID-19, the Biden transition team confirmed on Thursday. Richmond developed symptoms on December 16 and received a positive rapid test that day and a positive PCR test on Thursday.
Richmond attended a Georgia campaign rally with President-elect Joe Biden and Senate candidates Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, but transition spokeswoman Kate Bedingfield said Richmond traveled on his own to the rally and his interactions with Mr. Biden “happened in open air, were masked and totaled less than 15 consecutive minutes.”
Bedingfield said that immediately after Richmond tested positive, the transition team initiated contact tracing. They determined Richmond was in close contact with two individuals who traveled in his car, neither of whom were Mr. Biden, Ossoff or Warnock.
Mr. Biden underwent PCR testing for COVID-19 on Thursday, and it came back negative.
Richmond will quarantine for a period of 14 days and will produce two negative PCR tests before he returns to any in-person work in Congress or on the transition, Bedingfield said.
Richmond told CNN’s Don Lemon in a phone interview that he is “feeling fine, mild symptoms and no fever.”
Rebecca Kaplan and Fin Gomez contributed reporting.
