Former Republican presidential contender Herman Cain dies from COVID-19

by Hunter

Community

Thursday, Jul. 30, 2020 Thursday, Jul. 30, 2020 at 7:43:53am PDT

NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 03: Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain exits Trump Towers to speak with the media before a scheduled appearance with real estate mogul Donald Trump on October 3, 2011 in New York City. Cain, a fiscal and social conservative, won a recent Florida straw poll of Republican candidates. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) — Herman Cain.

Former Republican presidential contender Herman Cain has died due to COVID-19. Cain was hospitalized on July 2 for COVID-19 symptoms; his last apparent public appearance was at Donald Trump’s Tulsa, Oklahoma rally two weeks prior, on June 20. That event was intentionally structured to ignore pandemic safety recommendations, and Tulsa, Oklahoma saw a spike of COVID-19 cases in the weeks afterwards that public health experts believe was connected to Trump’s appearance.

Cain was a fierce public critic of mandatory mask efforts. The day before his hospitalization, he had praise for Trump’s no-mask policy a Mt. Rushmore event, declaring in a now-deleted tweet that “PEOPLE ARE FED UP!”

HereÃ¢ÂÂs just a few of the #BlackVoicesForTrump at tonightÃ¢ÂÂs rally! Having a fantastic time!#TulsaRally2020 #Trumptulsa #TulsaTrumprally #MAGA #Trump2020 #Trump2020Landslide pic.twitter.com/27mUzkg7kL
— Herman Cain (@THEHermanCain) June 20, 2020