“After testing negative this week, Speaker Pelosi received a positive test result for COVID-19 and is currently asymptomatic,” Pelosi Deputy Chief of Staff Drew Hammill tweeted. “The President is fully vaccinated and boosted, and is grateful for the robust protection the vaccine has provided.”
Pelosi, the top House Democrat, is 82. As Speaker of the House, Pelosi is second in the order of presidential succession behind the Vice President.
Hammill announced Pelosi’s positive test result just before Pelosi was due to have his weekly press conference with reporters, which was canceled. He also said a planned Congressional delegation to Asia, which will be led by Pelosi during the two-week congressional recess, “will be postponed to a later date.”
Hammill said Pelosi is currently asymptomatic. He added that Pelosi had tested negative earlier this week.
The White House said Biden was not considered a close contact with Pelosi. The White House also said the president tested negative Wednesday night as part of regular testing and that Biden will continue to be tested regularly.
Representatives Katherine Clark of Massachusetts, who is also Deputy House Leader Democrat, Joaquin Castro of Texas, Gregory Meeks of New York, Adam Schiff of California, Derek Kilmer of Washington, Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida and Scott Peters of California all announced their positive test results this week.
This is not the first time that someone near Pelosi has been reported to have tested positive for Covid.
Last month, Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin, known as Taoiseach, tested positive for Covid while attending a gala in Washington, DC. Pelosi was seen sitting next to Martin at the gala in a photo from the event.
In July 2021, a senior assistant in Pelosi’s office tested positive for Covid.
This story was updated with additional developments on Thursday.
CNN’s Allie Malloy, Paul LeBlanc, Jasmine Wright and Sam Fossum contributed to this report.