Multiple GOP Michiganders test positive for COVID-19 after district meeting

A group of Michigan Republicans have tested positive for COVID-19 after attending a district meeting at a local restaurant on March 25, according to The Detroit News.

At least four members of the group, and potentially up to eight, have received positive diagnoses following the meeting.

Jason Watts, an Allegan County Republican who attended the event, told the outlet that coronavirus restrictions were not being adhered to.

“This meeting is what’s happening in a lot of districts. They’re not following the guidelines. I would say, at most, that room should have had 40 people there,” Watts said of the gathering of about 69 people.

He continued, “The people in charge did not care.”

Watts noted that only about three people were masked throughout the duration of the meeting.

Scott McGraw, chairman of the 6th District Republican Committee, recalled the event having closer to 50 attendees.

The men heard varying estimates of those who have since gotten sick: Watts believes at least 10 have tested positive for the virus, and McGraw thought it was more like four to eight people.

“Most of them in that room are not believers in the vaccine,” McGraw said. “That’s something we’ve got to contend with.”

Michigan is currently one of the states experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases despite widespread vaccination efforts.

In the past week, the state has recorded a seven-day average of 7,377 new cases and 3,570 hospitalizations. Rather than reinstate strict coronavirus control measures, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) has opted to push for increased vaccine availability.