GOP Lawmaker Who Organized Anti-Vaccine Rally Gets COVID-19, Misses Own Event

A Republican lawmaker who organized an anti-vaccine rally skipped the event after he was diagnosed with COVID-19.

Rep. Jeff Hoverson, R-ND, assisted in the organization of the “We The People rally” that was set to gather at the steps of the state capitol in Bismarck, North Dakota, on Monday. The protest aimed to oppose President Joe Biden’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

But while the rally went ahead as scheduled, Hoverson did not make it to the event. On Sunday, a day before the rally, the Republican took to his Facebook account to announce that he had been infected with COVID-19.

“Covid is real and like a really bad flu. I am currently quarantining and each day is getting better,” he wrote in his post.

In the same post, Hoverson said he was taking the deworming drug ivermectin — a drug that some people promote as a treatment for COVID-19.

“Ivermectin, Hydroxychloroquine, vitamins, etc; according to hundreds upon hundreds of medical experts, including in ND, SHOULD BE OUR EARLY AMBULATORY CARE,” Hoverson added.

The Food and Drug Administration has already advised against the use of the drug, noting that many who self-medicated using ivermectin required hospitalization.

The North Dakota Republican also said he was taking hydroxychloroquine, a drug previously touted by former President Donald Trump as the cure to COVID-19. A randomized trial held by the World Health Organization found that hydroxychloroquine did not reduce mortality among COVID-19 patients nor did it reduce the need for a ventilator.

Hoverson has become the topic of several news headlines in the past months. In October, the lawmaker was barred from boarding a flight at Minot International Airport after an alleged run-in with a TSA agent.

The incident occurred after a TSA officer initiated a pat-down when the lawmaker set off the alarm in a screening machine. The agent said Hoverson refused to comply with the pat-down and moved the agent’s hand away. The lawmaker eventually complied when police arrived, but the airline decided to deny him boarding, according to The Associated Press.

Early this year, Hoverson also sponsored House Bill 1313, which would make anyone found to have performed an abortion to be guilty of a Class AA felony. Anyone who aided or facilitated the abortion could also be found guilty of a Class C felony.