Utah candidate and ex- envoy Huntsman says he has COVID-19

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Republican Utah gubernatorial candidate and former ambassador Jon Huntsman Jr. said Wednesday he has tested positive for COVID-19.

Huntsman said he is experiencing “classic symptoms” of the illness caused by the coronavirus, and will isolate himself while his campaign continues.

“Like so many others, my goal is to keep my family safe,” he said in a tweet. “Though isolated temporarily, we’ve never been more energized in this important race for governor. The work goes on!”

The news comes after a campaign staffer tested positive last week.

Huntsman previously served as Utah governor until 2009, when he left to be the U.S. ambassador to China under then-president Barack Obama. He later served as ambassador to Russia under President Donald Trump before resigning and mounting his campaign for governor.

Huntsman, 60, is one of four Republican candidates on the June 30 primary ballot. He is considered a front-runner, though in a tight contest with Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox, who has had a higher profile recently by helping run the state's response to the coronavirus crisis.

Primary ballots began going out this week in the election being conducted entirely by mail due to the pandemic. It's the first wide-open governor's race in Utah in more than a decade.

Huntsman went into quarantine last week and canceled all his public appearances after learning of the staff member’s positive test.

He attended a campaign event in the small northern Utah city of Logan shortly before getting the news. It was held outside to allow for social distancing practices, though a number of people there did not wear masks, the Herald Journal newspaper reported. A photo shows Huntsman shaking hands with an attendee, neither wearing a mask.

The number of coronavirus...