Missouri governor tests positive for COVID-19

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson (R) and first lady Teresa Parson both tested positive for the coronavirus, the governor’s office said Wednesday.

The office said Teresa Parson was tested Wednesday morning after showing minor symptoms. Mike Parson was tested too, and both tests came back positive. Staffers who came into contact with the governor are being tested and awaiting results.

The governor has canceled official and campaign events. His office said he is not experiencing any symptoms, and that he continues to work from the governor’s mansion in Jefferson City.

Parson is the second governor to test positive for COVID-19 since the beginning of the outbreak, after Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R). Stitt recovered and shared a photo of himself on social media donating plasma to help other patients.

Parson ascended to the governorship in 2018, after his predecessor, Eric Greitens (R), resigned in the midst of a sex abuse scandal. He faces Auditor Nicole Galloway (D) in November’s election for a full term, one of the marquee gubernatorial contests on the ballot this year.

Parson and Galloway had been scheduled to participate in a debate hosted by the Missouri Press Association on Friday. That debate is likely to be canceled as Parson isolates himself while he recovers.