Five of the Texas state House Democrats who flew from Austin to Washington, D.C. to stop Republican colleagues from passing a restrictive voting law have tested positive for COVID-19. Three of the lawmakers tested positive on Saturday, then the Texas House Democratic Caucus confirmed late Sunday that two more had joined them. According to the Texas Tribune, all the lawmakers who tested positive have been fully vaccinated, which protects against severe illness, and they’re all either showing no symptoms or mild symptoms. Texas state Rep. James Talarico told CNN on Saturday that the group knew the risks when it set out to the capital. “It brought health risk because there’s an active pandemic and many of our members are over the age of 65, yet they chose to travel because this is so much bigger than one politician,” he said. The group met with Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday, but spokesperson Symone Sanders reportedly said that she was “not at risk of exposure.”
