Sen. Tina Smith tests negative for COVID

October 20, 2020 at 1:18AM
U.S. Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., speaks to a gathering of people at the Waite Park Community Pavilion Saturday, Sept. 26, 2020, in Waite Park, Minn.
U.S. Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., speaks to a gathering of people at the Waite Park Community Pavilion Saturday, Sept. 26, 2020, in Waite Park, Minn. (Zach Dwyer/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

U.S. Sen. Tina Smith tested negative for COVID-19 on Monday after learning that a person at a Democratic campaign event earlier this month tested positive.

Smith, a Democrat, tweeted Sunday night that she would self-quarantine until getting the test results. She tweeted her negative test results on Monday morning and said she would return to Washington, with the Senate in session this week.

She noted that the campaign event was outdoors, that masks were required and that she was never in close contact with the person who tested positive. The event was on Oct. 10, her campaign said, and the person in question got positive test results on Sunday.

Smith's Republican opponent, former Rep. Jason Lewis, has quarantined himself several times in recent weeks after exposure to individuals who later tested positive. He also revealed he's had several negative test results.

Smith was appointed to the Senate in 2018 by Gov. Mark Dayton, won a special election later that year, and is now running for a full six-year term.

Patrick Condon

about the writer

about the writer

Patrick Condon

Night Team Leader

Patrick Condon is a Night Team Leader at the Star Tribune. He has worked at the Star Tribune since 2014 after more than a decade as a reporter for the Associated Press.

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