WASHINGTON _ Sen. Thom Tillis has tested positive for the coronavirus, the North Carolina Republican announced Friday night.
He said he has no symptoms.
Tillis participated in a televised debate with Democratic challenger Cal Cunningham on Thursday evening from a Spectrum News' Raleigh studio. Tillis was in Washington, D.C, earlier in the day Thursday to vote on the Senate floor.
Tillis, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, met with Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett on Wednesday at the U.S. Capitol.
"Over the last few months, I've been routinely tested for COVID-19, including testing negative last Saturday, but tonight my rapid antigen test came back positive. I will be following the recommendations of my doctor and will be self-isolating at home for 10 days and notifying those I've been in close contact with," Tillis said in a statement.
"Thankfully, I have no symptoms and I feel well. As we all know, COVID-19 is a very contagious and deadly virus, especially because many carriers are asymptomatic. I encourage all North Carolinians to follow the recommendations of medical experts, including wearing a mask, washing hands, and practicing social distancing.
"For any North Carolinian who believes they were exposed to the virus or starts to display symptoms, please call your doctor, self-isolate, and get tested to protect those around you."
Cunningham said on Twitter that he plans to get tested.
"I'm wishing @SenThomTillis a quick recovery following his positive COVID-19 test, and am thinking of him and his family. Because I was with Senator Tillis recently on the debate stage, I will also get tested," Cunningham posted on Twitter on Friday night.
President Donald Trump announced Friday morning that he had tested positive and went to stay at Walter Reed Hospital on Friday evening.
"President Trump has the best doctors in the world and I'm sure he'll receive excellent care at Walter Reed. We have a strong country and a strong president, and I have confidence that both will endure," Rep. Ted Budd, a North Carolina Republican, said in a statement to The News & Observer on Friday night.
Tillis was with Trump on Saturday at the White House when Trump announced the nomination of Barrett for the Supreme Court.
U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, a Republican from Utah, and University of Notre Dame President John Jenkins _ both of whom were at the event _ announced Friday that they had tested positive for the virus. Lee, like Tillis, is a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which is scheduled to consider Barrett's nomination beginning Oct. 12.
Rep. Alma Adams, a Democrat, said that she got tested for coronavirus Friday. Her test came back negative, she said on Twitter.
