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Andrew Yang, former Democratic presidential candidate and current New York mayoral candidate, announced that he tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday. He has since gone into quarantine, stating that he is experiencing “mild symptoms” but is “otherwise feeling well and in good spirits.”
This positive test result comes two weeks after Yang announced that he would be quarantining after a staff member of his campaign tested positive for COVID-19. As he waited for a negative test result in quarantine afterwards, he conducted virtual campaign events and began implementing contact tracing measures.
Yang, as compared to the other candidates in this year’s race, has worked to create an in-person campaign trail. With the emergence of his positive test result, some candidates have drawn sharper contrasts between their own virtual campaigns and Yang’s in-person campaign.
Candidate Scott M. Stringer wished Yang a quick recovery but stated that Yang’s case was a “wake-up call” to those in the mayoral race, according to The New York Times. “Nobody wants to see, you know, a colleague get sick,” he added.
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Stringer also referenced candidate Eric Adams, who drew criticism for fundraising in-doors. “But you don’t want to be the one to expose people,” Stringer said. “So, you know, whether it’s indoor fund-raising or up-close campaigning, we have to write new rules to keep people safe while we inoculate as many people as possible.”
Yang also drew criticism early into his mayoral bid for moving his family out of New York City to Georgia in December of 2020. ““We live in a two-bedroom apartment in Manhattan,” he explained to The New York Times. “And so, like, can you imagine trying to have two kids on virtual school in a two-bedroom apartment, and then trying to do work yourself?”
At the end of his announcement, Yang was quick to reassure his supporters of his health and safety, as well as to propose a method of aiding in his recovery.
“In all seriousness if you want me to feel better donate to my campaign!” he wrote. “Then I can relax.”
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