White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, who has frequently appeared at public events without wearing a mask, has been diagnosed with Covid-19, a source familiar with the situation told Reuters news agency on Friday (US standard time).
It was not immediately clear when or how he was infected.
Meadows regularly accompanied US President Donald Trump on the final frenzied days of the campaign rallies leading up to the presidential election on Tuesday.
Meadows, who was at a White House election night party attended by dozens of Trump loyalists, is the latest official within Trump’s close circle to have contracted Covid-19, which has killed more than 230,000 Americans.
Trump, his wife Melania and son Barron all previously fought off the coronavirus infection, as has Trump’s national security adviser Robert O’Brien.
