Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser is in hot water after she reportedly flouted the city’s reinstated mask policy while she attended a wedding over the weekend.

The Democratic mayor officiated a wedding at The Line DC, a hotel in the city’s Adams Morgan neighborhood. Fox 5 DC obtained footage of Bowser conducting the ceremony on the roof, but when the wedding moved inside afterwards for the reception, the mayor was reportedly among hundreds of attendees who were seen not wearing a mask.

The Washington Examiner, which was first to report this, obtained a photo that purportedly shows Bowser sitting at a table with other unmasked people nearby while she was neither eating or drinking. The outlet says they attempted to approach her and ask for an explanation, but they were blocked by security.

Bowser’s apparent maskless display comes shortly after she reinstated the district’s mandate requiring everyone to wear masks indoors, regardless of vaccination status. The move was a reaction to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendation that people should wear face masks again to counteract the spread of the highly-contagious delta variant of the coronavirus.

Fox 5 received a statement from Bowser’s office which defended the mayor’s actions while officiating the wedding. It also insists Bowser did wear a mask inside, though the statement does not directly address the Examiner photo:

On Saturday, July 31st, Mayor Bowser officiated an outdoor, rooftop wedding ceremony, followed by an indoor dinner. The Mayor wore a mask indoors in compliance with the mandate, and the organizers and venue staff worked to create a safe environment for the staff and guests. The Friday, July 30th evening event called into question by conservative media was outdoors, on a rooftop. We continue to emphasize everyone should be vaccinated as soon as possible and to wear a mask at indoor public settings to protect yourself, your loved ones and your neighbors.

The wedding come after she held an early birthday party for herself where she was spotted without a mask while she posed for photos, a day before the mask mandate was in effect.

The post D.C. Mayor Spotted Maskless at Indoor Wedding Reception After Bringing Back Mask Guidance first appeared on Mediaite.

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