BOISE, Idaho — On Tuesday afternoon, Senator Maryanne Jordan (D-Boise) walked out of the Idaho Senate Chambers after the majority caucus decided to continue the legislative session as normal, as no members have shown any COVID-19 symptoms.
That decision was made after the republicans caucused and decided they wanted to stay and get through the 80-plus bills still waiting for approval, much to the disagreement of Sen. Jordan.
"We've been trying to work with the majority leadership for several days now on getting this place shut down and get people out of here," Sen. Jordan said. "This doesn't have to have to be happening. The Governor can call us back after a period of time as long as it's before July 1."
On Sunday, March 16, President Trump advised that people should not congregate in groups of ten or more in order to stop the spread of the virus, per CDC guidelines.
"We all know that the requirements are ten people or fewer and we should all be doing everything we can to flatten the curve," she said.
Sen. Jordan, along with Senator David Nelson (D-Moscow) and Rep. Steve Berch (D-Boise) have all left the statehouse indefinitely.
"I felt like I was putting my community at risk by continually exposing myself to this," Sen. Jordan said. "I made a statement and explained that waiting for someone in the building to become symptomatic is not the time to address this issue, the time to address it is before that happens."
Sen. Jordan says she will not seek a replacement for the remainder of the session.
"I can't ask another person to go into an unsafe environment," she said.
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