DENVER — Gov. Jared Polis expressed concern in a news conference Wednesday that numbers of new cases of COVID-19 had jumped up in the state after hitting a daily low of new cases on June 15.

The governor said the increase in new cases of the disease appeared to have resulted from people participating in protests as well as people involved in large gatherings and parties. He urged people to follow recommended guidelines, especially social distancing and wearing of masks.

Polis remains optimistic about the state’s recovery from the pandemic. While speaking Wednesday to elected and appointed public officials who participate in the NoCo Strong for Business collaboration, he credited business leaders for taking leadership roles.

“It really is a credit to our business leaders for taking the pandemic seriously. We’re bucking the trend that we’re seeing in neighboring states,” he said, in reference to spikes in the disease in several states around Colorado.

“We’re trying to get to the fires when they’re small and fight them,” he said of outbreaks. “This isn’t forever. There will be a vaccine. We want to make sure our county health departments have the equipment they need… I’m proud that our legislature has given us some tools to use,” he said.

“We simply must succeed in containing this” because of the economic impact and because “we never want to exceed our ability of hospitals to take care of them [patients],” the governor said.

In a separate news conference, the governor encouraged residents to take precautions as the Fourth of July holiday approaches, to celebrate with members of their households and not to participate in large holiday gatherings.

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