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This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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FACT BRIEF

Did Michigan’s governor travel to Florida in March?

By Jacob Alabab-Moser
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YES

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer disclosed that she made a two-day trip to Florida sometime in March, provoking more criticism of her leadership.

In an April 20 Washington Post interview, Whitmer said she made the trip to visit her father, who suffers from a chronic illness. She noted that the trip was the third she has taken since the pandemic began. The others were to visit National Guard troops following the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and to the presidential inauguration.

A spokesperson for Whitmer said that the Florida trip occurred “when Michigan’s daily positivity rate was in the low single digits” and that she followed all health guidelines. Republican critics accused the governor of taking a “tropical vacation,” showing “rampant hypocrisy” given official warnings against unnecessary travel as the state recorded levels of coronavirus infections in recent weeks.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
Washington Post Transcript: A conversation with Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer
Detroit News Whitmer traveled out of state to visit her father
Deadline Detroit Whitmer visit to ailing dad In Florida gives critics a new flashpoint
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Gigafact
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.