Seven weeks after she won an Arizona special election, Democrat Adelita Grijalva will be sworn in Wednesday and become the potentially deciding vote on the release of files related to sex abuser Jeffrey Epstein.
House Speaker Mike Johnson is calling the House back into session for the first time in nearly two months. He refused to convene the House during the government shutdown, as his chamber had already passed a funding measure.
Before the House votes on a funding package to end the shutdown, Ms. Grijalva will be administered the oath of office. The House is expected to begin voting on the package as soon as 4 p.m. Wednesday.
“After seven weeks of waiting, I almost can’t believe it’s true,” Ms. Grijalva said on social media Monday.
Ms. Grijalva is expected to be the last of the 218 needed signatures on a petition to force a vote on the Epstein files.
The petition would require that all Justice Department investigative files on Epstein be made public.
Mr. Johnson, Louisiana Republican, has derided that claim as a “red herring”
But he had long said he would not swear in Ms. Grijalva until the House returns, sparking the ire of Democrats, some of whom accused him of assisting in a cover-up.
Democrats pointed out that two Florida Republicans were sworn in earlier this year during a pro forma session a day after winning their special elections. Mr. Johnson noted in rebuttal that it took former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, California Democrat, almost a month to swear in Rep. Julia Letlow, Louisiana Republican, who won a special election to replace her late husband.
Ms. Grijalva was elected in a special election on Sept. 23 to fill the seat of Raul Grijalva, her late father.
Last month, Arizona’s attorney general filed a lawsuit, hoping to speed up her swearing-in.
