Freshman Miami congresswoman-elect to miss D.C. swearing-in ceremony due to COVID-19
Miami Congresswoman-elect María Elvira Salazar will be unable to attend a Sunday ceremony in Washington to swear in members of the new Congress after learning she has COVID-19 during an emergency trip to the hospital, her office announced Thursday morning.
Salazar, a Republican who last month defeated Democratic U.S. Rep. Donna Shalala in perhaps the most surprising congressional upset in the country, discovered she had contracted the coronavirus after she was admitted to Doctors Hospital with a heart arrhythmia on Dec. 23, according to a press release issued Thursday.
Salazar was “admitted overnight,” treated over the course of 24 hours, and then released, according to her office. Salazar says she is quarantining at home for at least 14 days on the advice of doctors, which will force her to miss a Jan. 3 ceremony in Washington to swear in members of the 117th Congress.
“I am incredibly thankful to the tireless front-line medical workers in our community, who help so many people combating the COVID-19 pandemic,” Salazar, 59, said in a statement. “I am in quarantine at home and getting better each day. I look forward to hitting the ground running for my community, once it is medically permissible.”
Salazar’s press release did not elaborate on her condition or explain why she waited a week to announce her diagnosis. A Salazar spokesman did not make her available for an interview and did not respond to questions about the severity of her condition except to say that she is still experiencing symptoms “but is getting better every day.”
Salazar’s diagnosis and quarantine will delay her swearing-in as a member of the U.S. House, all of whom are required to take an oath to the U.S. Constitution. Most members will take the oath Sunday on the House floor.
According to the Congressional Research Service, members who miss the swearing-in ceremony are required to take the oath at a later date, either in the House chamber or at a location designated by the Speaker of the House. The House Speaker also designates the person who administers the oath.
A spokesman for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi did not respond to an email seeking comment. Mark Bednar, a spokesman for House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, said Republicans “look forward to her getting here and being a great member.”
Other members of Miami’s new congressional delegation have contracted COVID-19, including Congressman-elect Carlos Gimenez and U.S. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart. On Tuesday, Luke Letlow, an incoming Republican congressman from Louisiana, died of complications of COVID-19.
Since the pandemic began, the Florida Department of Health has reported 295,936 cases of COVID-19 in Miami-Dade County, where, as in many places in the country, the number of positive cases is on the rise.
This story was originally published December 31, 2020 at 8:19 AM.
