Copyright Santa Clarita Valley Signal
By Arjun Singh Contributing Writer WASHINGTON — An Arizona Democrat was sworn in as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday, exactly 50 days after winning a special election to the body on Sept. 23. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who controls whether the House enters session, said he delayed Rep. Adelita Grijalva’s assumption of office because of the ongoing U.S. government shutdown. Grijalva won a special election in Arizona’s 7th Congressional District, which had been represented by her late father, Rep. Raúl Grijalva, for 22 years — from 2003 until his death this year on March 15. Her district, which covers Tucson and wide swaths of Southern Arizona along the U.S. border with Mexico, leans heavily Democratic. After being sworn in, Grijalva immediately signed a “discharge petition” to force a vote on a bill compelling the release of documents regarding the deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Discharge petitions are used by members to bypass House leadership to bring bills to the floor. Grijalva’s signature allowed the petition to hit the critical threshold, 218 signatories, to force a vote on the bill. The Epstein Files Transparency Act, co-sponsored by Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., is now supported by all Democrats and three Republicans in addition to Massie: Reps. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and Nancy Mace, R-S.C. “We all deserve to know what’s in the Epstein files, who’s implicated, and how deep this corruption goes,” Massie said in a July statement. “Americans were promised justice and transparency.” The White House and President Donald Trump have described the efforts tied to Epstein disclosure as a “hoax” manufactured by Democrats. “The Democrats are trying to bring up the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax again because they’ll do anything at all to deflect on how badly they’ve done on the shutdown, and so many other subjects,” wrote Trump on social media on Wednesday. When the vote will be taken on the bill is to be determined. With Grijalva’s signature, it will have seven days to “ripen.” Johnson will then have two days to schedule a vote. Johnson said he would allow a vote on the Epstein Files Transparency Act if the discharge petition is successful. “If it hits 218, it comes to the floor,” he told Politico on Oct. 21. Adelita Grijalva had alleged that Johnson’s refusal to swear her into office earlier was to prevent her from signing the discharge petition. Johnson, for his part, denied the accusation. The effort to swear in Grijalva became a cause célèbre among House Democrats, who demonstrated outside Johnson’s office to demand that she be sworn in immediately. As a member-elect, Grijalva was unable to access resources normally available to members for travel, constituent support and other activities. Grijalva is the latest member to join the 119th Congress after a special election. Several others, such as Republican Reps. Randy Fine and Jimmy Patronis, both from Florida, and Rep. James Waukinshaw, D-Va., have taken office after winning such elections. Special elections to the House are also scheduled this year in Texas and Tennessee. Jackson Richman contributed to this report.
