The number of new confirmed cases of coronavirus surged by its greatest amount in nearly two months Saturday in Washington state.

State health officials reported 442 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Saturday – the biggest one-day jump since April 10, when 452 new confirmed cases were tallied. Since then, the daily count of new cases has rarely jumped by more than 300.

The spike in new confirmed cases brings the statewide total to 23,442 since the start of the pandemic.

There was no immediate official explanation for the sudden increase in confirmed cases. But it comes after most counties have moved to reopen their economies and after nine days of statewide protests that have brought many thousands of people into close contact.

Virus testing also has become more widely available, which may be turning up cases that would…