Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he has tested positive for COVID-19.
He made the announcement in a tweet on Monday morning, adding that he’s “feeling fine” and will keep working remotely this week. He also urged everyone to “please get vaccinated and get boosted.” Trudeau is fully vaccinated and received a COVID-19 booster shot on Jan. 4.
On Thursday, Trudeau said he was going into isolation for five days after discovering the previous evening that he had been in contact with someone who tested positive. That person was one of his three children, he told The Canadian Press.
This is the first time the prime minister has tested positive for COVID-19, but not the first time he’s been exposed. In the early months of the pandemic, Trudeau isolated at home after his wife tested positive for COVID.
Trudeau’s positive case comes on the heels of a weekend that saw thousands of truckers and supporters swarm Parliament Hill to protest vaccine mandates and other COVID-19 restrictions. Trudeau and his family were reportedly moved to a secret location during the demonstrations. Many of the participants expressed outrage at the prime minister and demanded that he be thrown out of office. Days earlier, Trudeau had called the truckers headed for the city a “small fringe minority.”
The prime minister is scheduled to deliver remarks and take questions virtually today during a press conference. He’s expected to address the ongoing “freedom convoy” protests that took place over the weekend.
