Mayor-elect Scott tests negative for virus
Self-quarantining after exposure; inauguration should go as scheduled
Baltimore City Council President and Mayor-elect Brandon Scott was selfquarantining after being exposed to the coronavirus.
Scott, 36, said in an interview Friday that he has never had any COVID-19 symptoms, and has tested negative repeatedly — including again Friday.
A few members of his staff also have been tested and are experiencing no symptoms, he said.
Based on guidelines from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, the Democrat said he expects to come out of quarantine Saturday and that his inauguration should proceed on schedule.
Plans for the event at noon Tuesday inside the City Hall rotunda already were minimal due to the pandemic, omitting invited guests and dignitaries for public health reasons. The mayorelect said Friday he is now even leaning against having his parents attend, as originally planned.
“I want to make sure they’re as healthy and safe as possible,” he said.
Scott will deliver remarks outside City Hall immediately after taking the oath of office.
Scott said he was notified Nov. 28 of the exposure.
“I continue to consult with the health commissioner and Health Department daily and, out of an abundance of caution, will continue my quarantine as long as the public health professionals deem it necessary,” he said in a news release Thursday.
Late Thursday, Scott tweeted a video update, saying, “#Baltimore Thank you for checking on me! I am feeling great!”
“I am doing fine at home, following the advice of public health professionals. Feeling great. As I said, we said before, tested negative, but want to lead by example — a quarantine at home, growing a quarantine beard to go with the quarantine fro,” Scott said in the video.
“But wanted to thank everybody for all your emails, your texts, your phone calls, your social media messages, and just want to show everybody the gratitude for wishing me well. Again, I feel fine. I feel great. Still working here at home in myhome office and can’t wait to come back out and work and do that in a socially distanced, safe way.”
Scott, who is routinely seen wearing a mask at events indoors and outdoors, is tested for COVID-19 every other day, Stefanie Mavronis, Scott’s spokeswoman, said Thursday.
“It just shows how even someone like him, who is taking all the possible precautions and is in touch with all the health experts, that he can still end up being exposed,” Mavronis said.
The health department conducted contact tracing regarding the exposure and notified Scott he was a “potential close contact” to someone with the illness. Mavronis declined to specify at what event Scott was exposed to help protect the infected individual’s identity.