Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers tests positive for COVID-19

Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers says he has tested positive for COVID-19, amid an ongoing rise in cases across the Puget Sound region.

Somers is fully vaccinated and boosted, and says he is experiencing mild symptoms so far. He remains worried for his wife, though, who is immuno-compromised, and at risk of more severe illness should she contract the virus.

He points to the highly-infectious nature of the omicron variant as the likely cause of his own positive test. Somers also expressed frustration surrounding people who are still refusing to wear masks in public, particularly around those who are most vulnerable.

“Those people are not taking a simple step to help all of us, whether it’s me, or my wife, or anyone else who’s immunocompromised,” he said during a Wednesday briefing with the Snohomish County Health District.

Somers is the second elected leader in Washington state to test positive for COVID-19 in recent days, with Attorney General Bob Ferguson first developing symptoms over the Christmas holiday weekend. On Monday, Jan. 3, Ferguson told Seattle’s Morning News on KIRO Radio that the virus hit him hard.

“Frankly, I’m still even kind of just recovering from it — just physically, and with the headaches I’ve still got. To be honest, it’s been a real challenge,” Ferguson described. “When I first got it, I was flat on my back for 36 hours and I wasn’t even moving. So it’s been kind of a slow recovery since then.”