Coronavirus updates: 23 COVID-19 cases linked to Trump rallies

The outbreaks occurred at Trump campaign rallies in Minnesota last month.

ByMorgan Winsor, Erin Schumaker, and Ivan Pereira
Video byJessie DiMartino
Last Updated: October 27, 2020, 5:32 AM EDT

A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now killed more than 1.1 million people worldwide.

Over 43 million people across the globe have been diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the new respiratory virus, according to data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. The criteria for diagnosis -- through clinical means or a lab test -- has varied from country to country. Still, the actual numbers are believed to be much higher due to testing shortages, many unreported cases and suspicions that some national governments are hiding or downplaying the scope of their outbreaks.

Since the first cases were detected in China in December, the virus has rapidly spread to every continent except Antarctica.

The United States is the worst-affected country, with more than 8.6 million diagnosed cases and at least 225,230 deaths.

California has the most cases of any U.S. state, with more than 906,000 people diagnosed, according to Johns Hopkins data. California is followed by Texas and Florida, with over 892,000 cases and over 778,000 cases, respectively.

Nearly 200 vaccine candidates for COVID-19 are being tracked by the World Health Organization, at least 10 of which are in crucial phase three studies. Of those 10 potential vaccines in late-stage trials, there are currently five that will be available in the United States if approved.

Latest headlines:

Here's how the news developed today. All times Eastern.
Oct 26, 2020, 8:15 AM EDT

France may actually have 100,000 new cases per day, government advisor says

France's public health agency said Sunday that it had confirmed another 52,010 cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, the highest daily increase the country has seen since the start of the pandemic.

However, Dr. Jean-Francois Delfraissy, who heads the scientific council that advises the French government on the pandemic, told France's RTL radio on Monday morning that, in reality, the country may have an estimated 100,000 new cases per day due to undiagnosed cases and asymptomatic infections.

A sign displays service hours at a restaurant's terrace in Nice, France, on Oct. 24, 2020, as the city prepares for a new nightly curfew imposed in an effort to combat a second wave of coronavirus pandemic.
Eric Gaillard/Reuters

Delfraissy said that France is in a "very difficult, even critical, situation."

As of Sunday afternoon, France's public health agency had confirmed a total of 1,138,507 cases with 34,761 deaths. More than 12,000 patients remained hospitalized with COVID-19, including at least 1,816 in intensive care.

The European nation has the fifth-highest tally of diagnosed cases, after the United States, India, Brazil and Russia, according to a count kept by Johns Hopkins University.

ABC News' Ibtissem Guenfoud contributed to this report.

Oct 26, 2020, 7:42 AM EDT

World 'should learn from Senegal,' WHO epidemiologist says

As the novel coronavirus spreads rapidly across the United States, a top infectious disease epidemiologist is praising the successful testing and diagnosis strategy of a West African nation.

"We can [and] should learn from Senegal," Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, the COVID-19 technical lead at the World Health Organization, wrote on her official Twitter account Sunday.

A woman wears a face mask to protect against the novel coronavirus while sitting outside her house in the Ouakam neighbourhood of Dakar, Senegal, on Oct. 23, 2020.
Zohra Bensemra/Reuters

Van Kerkhove's tweet included a post from the WHO's Regional Office for Africa about the challenges Senegal faced at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic and how the country has taken steps to strengthen its testing through digitization, decentralization and fast results. Since the start of pandemic, the nation of 16 million people has reported at least 15,565 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 322 deaths.

In another tweet, Van Kerkhove said the world should also learn from Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, South Korea, Japan, Rwanda, Uruguay, China and Singapore.

Oct 26, 2020, 7:17 AM EDT

China testing entire city after a single asymptomatic case

All 4.7 million residents of a city in China's northwest Xinjiang region are being tested for COVID-19 after a single asymptomatic case was detected there, officials said.

Local authorities launched the mass testing program in Kashgar, after a 17-year-old girl who didn't have any symptoms tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday during a routine screening at the garment factory where she works.

PHOTO: Commuters wearing face masks to help protect against the novel coronavirus look out from a traveling bus during the morning rush hour in Beijing, China, on Oct. 26, 2020.
Commuters wearing face masks to help protect against the novel coronavirus look out from a traveling bus during the morning rush hour in Beijing, China, on Oct. 26, 2020. Schools have been closed and communities are on lockdown in Kashgar, a city in China's northwest Xinjiang region, after more than 130 asymptomatic cases of the coronavirus were discovered.
Andy Wong/AP

By Sunday afternoon, another 137 asymptomatic cases were identified in Kashgar -- all linked to another factory where the girl's parents work, according to a statement from Xinjiang's regional health commission. It's the highest number of asymptomatic COVID-19 cases reported in a day in China in more than six months.

Testing of the entire city is expected to be completed by Tuesday. At least 2.8 million people have been tested so far, according to Xinjiang's regional health commission.

Meanwhile, lockdown measures have been imposed and all schools in the region are closed until Friday.

Oct 26, 2020, 5:57 AM EDT

El Paso County imposes nighttime curfew as hospitals and ICUs fill up

A nightly curfew has been issued for El Paso County in Texas, where COVID-19 infections have exploded in recent weeks.

El Paso County Judge Ricardo Samaniego ordered all residents to stay home between the hours of 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., starting Sunday night, for the next two weeks to help prevent further spread of infection. The curfew is not applicable for those traveling for work or essential services, only one person per household is allowed to access essential services at a time.

A fine of $250 will be handed down to those who aren't wearing a mask and $500 for any other violations of the order, Samaniego said.

A bartender wearing face mask to protect against the novel coronavirus makes a cocktail at Strelka bar in Moscow, Russia, on Oct. 23, 2020.
Pavel Golovkin/AP

El Paso County has seen a 160% increase in COVID-19 positivity rates since Oct. 1, as well as a 300% jump in hospitalizations. As of Saturday night, all hospitals and intensive care units in the area had reached 100% capacity, according to Samaniego.

"The purpose of the curfew is to limit mobility in the community," Samaniego said during a press conference Sunday night. "Currently, our hospitals are stretched to capacity."

ABC News' Marilyn Heck contributed to this report.

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