Vaccinated Minnesota Gov. Tom Walz and Family Test Positive for COVID

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and his family have tested positive for COVID-19 despite being fully vaccinated, his office said Tuesday.

Though the governor said that he and his wife, Gwen Walz, are asymptomatic, they decided to get tested Monday after his teenage son starting displaying mild symptoms over the weekend.

Walz received the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine in March and then a Moderna booster in October. The governor said that he and his family will quarantine for 10 days.

"My family and I are isolating, and I will continue to work from home until I feel better and test negative for the virus," Walz said in a statement. "In the meantime, I encourage every Minnesotan to get tested before the holidays, and to roll up their sleeves and get their vaccine and their booster to ensure they, too, have strong protection against COVID-19."

Walz is the latest in a string of fully vaccinated politicians who have recently tested positive for the virus. Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren announced Sunday that she had contracted the virus after undergoing one of her regular tests for COVID-19.

"Thankfully, I am only experiencing mild symptoms & am grateful for the protection provided against serious illness that comes from being vaccinated & boosted," Warren tweeted. "As cases increase across the country, I urge everyone who has not already done so to get the vaccine and the booster as soon as possible - together, we can save lives."

New Jersey Senator Cory Booker and Colorado Representative Jason Crow also announced Sunday that they were positive for COVID-19. Crow said in a tweet that he had "just returned from an official congressional delegation visit to Ukraine and tested positive for a breakthrough COVID infection."

"I'm thankful to be fully vaccinated and boosted and experiencing only mild symptoms," he wrote, adding that "the vaccine is safe and effective."

"Everyone eligible should get vaccinated and boosted to help prevent major illness and protect our community. I'll continue to push for affordable access to rapid, reliable testing for all Americans," Crow tweeted.

"As a dad, I'm super concerned for my family," Walz said in a video posted on Twitter, while expressing faith in the effectiveness of vaccines and booster shots, citing his own lack of symptoms. The governor urged Minnesotans to get the booster shot and get tested if they experience any symptoms during the holiday season.

"The biggest gift we can give is staying safe and seeing our relatives into the new year," he said.

The Omicron variant has quickly become the dominant version of the coronavirus, making up 73 percent of new infections across the country this week, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Minnesota hospital capacity remains strained amid fears of an Omicron-fueled spike in cases, with nearly 1,500 people hospitalized with complications due to COVID-19 as of Monday, including 355 in intensive care.

Update 12/21/21, 2:25 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.