Grijalva Sworn In, Triggering Epstein Files Vote After Contentious Standoff
The swearing-in of Arizona Representative Adelita Grijalva on Wednesday ended a seven-week impasse and immediately paved the way for a House vote on releasing additional files related to the late Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted sex offender.
The House chamber erupted in applause as Grijalva took the oath of office, a moment occurring just before lawmakers were set to address legislation aimed at resolving the longest federal government shutdown in U.S.history. Grijalva won a special election in late September to succeed her father, Raúl Grijalva, who passed away in March, but her seating was delayed by House Speaker Mike Johnson.
“It has been 50 days since the people of Arizona’s seventh congressional district elected me to represent them – 50 days that over 800,000 Arizonans have been left without access to the basic services that every constituent deserves,” Grijalva stated in her inaugural address.”This is an abuse of power.”
Grijalva’s arrival shifts the balance in the House, narrowing the already slim Republican majority. Crucially, she became the 218th and final signature needed on a discharge petition, automatically forcing a floor vote on legislation demanding the Justice Department release further files concerning Epstein. Speaking in both English and Spanish, Grijalva declared, “Justice cannot wait another day, adelante.”
The vote on the release of the Epstein files is now scheduled for early December.Survivors of Epstein’s abuse, Liz Stein and Jessica Michaels, witnessed the proceedings from the House gallery alongside Grijalva’s family.
Earlier on Wednesday, House oversight Democrats released previously unseen emails from epstein that mention former President Donald Trump. A 2011 email to Ghislaine Maxwell described Trump as a “dog that hasn’t barked” after noting he “spent hours at my house” with a sex-trafficking victim. Another email, from 2019 to author Michael Wolff, stated that Trump “knew about the girls as he asked ghislaine to stop.”
Lawmakers emphasize th
He had sworn in two Florida republicans earlier in the year while the House was also out of session. Arizona’s Democratic Attorney General, Kris Mayes, even filed a lawsuit last month seeking to compel Johnson to seat Grijalva.
“She has a proud family legacy, and we’re delighted to have her here,” Johnson said during the oath ceremony, defending his actions by claiming he was following precedent set by former Speaker Nancy pelosi, alleging she had similarly delayed ceremonies for Republicans. He maintained his decision was unrelated to avoiding a vote on the Epstein-related documents,despite intense pressure from Trump allies to shield the former president from scrutiny regarding his long-standing social ties with Epstein.
In a passionate floor speech, Representative Greg Stanton of Arizona criticized johnson for the delay, recounting a televised statement where the Speaker remarked, “Bless her heart. She is representative-elect. She doesn’t know how it works around here.” Stanton countered, “Bless his heart, because here’s how it should work…Let’s call it the Adelita Grijalva precedent – when the American people vote, this chamber respects their will and seats them immediately.”
Representative Paul gosar, a far-right Republican from Arizona, also welcomed Grijalva, acknowledging she “follows her late father’s footsteps” in the chamber where he served for over two decades. “Boy, it was some footsteps, especially with his bolo ties,” Gosar fondly recalled. “I have ther’s no doubt whatsoever she will bring to the halls of Congress the same energy that has defined her years of public service.”
In her remarks, Grijalva honored her late father as a champion for the poor and vulnerable, rising from a vaquero to a congressman. “That is the promise of this country,” she said, adding that this promise was “under serious threat.” She warned of attacks on basic freedoms, skyrocketing healthcare costs, and the separation of families at the border, concluding, “What is most concerning is not what this management has done, but what the majority in this body has failed to do: hold Trump accountable as a co-equal branch of government that we are.”
