In Virginia, where new GOP Gov. GLENN YOUNGKIN has been fighting to end masking in schools, there was a major political turning point on the issue Tuesday: Ten of the 21 Democrats in the state Senate joined their Republican colleagues to pass a bill that bans local school boards from implementing school mask mandates. It’s expected to be signed into law soon.

The Biden administration is not following the shift of Dem leaders in the states. CDC Director ROCHELLE WALENSKY told Reuters on Tuesday that — much as people would like to move past the pandemic — “now is not the moment” to end school mask mandates.

But voters are increasingly siding with the governors, as NYT’s Nate Cohn noted in a Tuesday analysis. He cited a recent Monmouth poll showing that 7 in 10 of Americans agree with the statement that “it’s time we accept Covid is here to stay and we just need to get on with our lives.” Support for mask and vaccine mandates is rapidly declining.