DC Mayor Defends Trip to Delaware to Attend Biden Speech as 'Essential Travel'

The mayor of Washington, D.C. defended her trip to Delaware to attend a speech by Joe Biden as "essential travel," despite the state being listed as at high risk for the CCP virus.

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Published: 11/11/2020, 10:06:00 AM EST

DC Mayor Defends Trip to Delaware to Attend Biden Speech as 'Essential Travel' — Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser speaks to members of the press after she visited the outdoor public art installation "In America How Could This Happen..." at the D.C. Armory parade ground in Washington on Nov. 2, 2020. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

The mayor of Washington, D.C. defended her trip to Wilmington, Delaware to attend a speech by Joe Biden as "essential travel," despite the state being listed as at high risk for the CCP virus.

Mayor Muriel Bowser traveled to the state on Nov. 7 after the former vice president's campaign and a slew of media outlets projected Biden as president-elect.

A spokesperson for the Democratic mayor said in a statement on Tuesday the trip was within the mayor's "officials capacity" as she met with members of the Biden/Harris campaign, FOX5 reported.

She also said the trip was under official government business and "excepted under mayor's order."

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The mayor's statement on her trip came after social media users and several reports criticized her for violating her own travel advisory set to curb the spread of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus.

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden speaks at The Queen theater in Wilmington, Del., on Nov. 9, 2020. (Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo) — Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden speaks at The Queen theater in Wilmington, Del., on Nov. 9, 2020. Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo

"I do a lot of things to advance the interests of the District of Columbia, and some of them are formal, and some of them are informal, but all of them are necessary," Bowser said.

On Nov. 2, Bowser's office released an updated list for high-risk states that included Delaware, noting that "anyone coming into Washington, D.C. from a high-risk state (within the prior 14 days) who was traveling for non-essential activities will be required to self-quarantine for 14 days from their arrival in the District."

"Individuals traveling from high-risk states after essential travel or arriving in the District for essential travel are required to self-monitor for symptoms of COVID-19 for 14 days and, if they show signs or experience symptoms of COVID-19, they are to self-quarantine and seek medical advice or testing."

The mayor's office told FOX5 she has been monitored after the trip and is currently not experiencing symptoms, adding that she is regularly tested for COVID-19.

Bowser was accompanied to the speech by at least two of her staff members. It wasn't immediately clear if they are abiding by the state's quarantine rules.