More than three weeks after winning her congressional race, Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva never imagined her fight to get sworn into office would take this long.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., says he won’t swear in Grijalva until the government shutdown is over.
On the campaign trail, Grijalva promised to sign onto a bipartisan petition to force a vote in the House to release the Epstein files.
The delay has also angered those hoping for a vote on the Epstein files.
Grijalva says her dad set a high bar in office with his constituents, one she hopes to follow once she’s finally seated.
Over three weeks after emerging victorious in her congressional bid, Rep. Adelita Grijalva, the president-elect, never thought her battle to take the oath of office would take so long.
Other than the keys to her office, the Democrat from Arizona has little else.
“I don’t have any staff dots. The phones are not functional. “There isn’t a computer,” Grijalva declares from her bare Capitol Hill office. “We don’t have an official email address. “.”.
Grijalva’s new political career in Washington has had a rough start because of the same acute partisan tensions that have dominated the 119th Congress.
Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. declares that until the government shutdown is over, he will not swear in Grijalva.
“This is the House’s procedure, and we’ll follow it as soon as we resume our business,” he stated.
Johnson has sworn in new members from both parties within days of winning their races, so this is a change from his previous practice.
The Speaker had previously stated that he would swear in the Arizona candidate as soon as they desired. The “pomp and circumstance” that is a part of the ceremony, but only available when the government is open, should be enjoyed by the winner, he later stated.
Johnson is therefore being accused by both parties that he is attempting to evade a vote that would require the Justice Department to release documents related to its investigation into convicted sexual offender Jeffrey Epstein.
In September, Grijalva was elected. In a special election, he placed 23rd to represent the state’s 7th congressional district, which is a border district that partly encompasses Tucson.
Grijalva pledged during the campaign to support a bipartisan petition to compel a House vote to make the Epstein files public. In an effort spearheaded by Representatives, her signature would be the crucial 218th to bring about that vote. Massie, Thomas, R-Ky. Ro Khanna, D-Calif, and others.
Grijalva recalls how someone approached him on election night and said, “I don’t think they’re going to swear you in because of those Epstein files.”. And I suddenly realized that was definitely a conspiracy theory. As if that won’t occur. And here we are. “.”.
Johnson has referred to allegations that he is attempting to postpone Grijalva’s swearing-in as a “partisan manufactured thing.”. “..”.
He claims that Republicans are already working to make records available as part of an inquiry headed by the House Oversight Committee, which is led by the Republican Party.
Johnson told reporters earlier this week, “That committee is made up of the bulldogs in Congress, and they’re all working together in a bipartisan manner to go through and release documents.”.
Grijalva’s supporters are furious with Johnson’s explanations. Democrats have demanded her seat on the House floor. Lawmakers chanted, “Swear her in,” as they marched to Johnson’s office Tuesday. “..”.
Those who wanted a vote on the Epstein files are also upset about the delay. Sen. . Ariz, D. Ruben Gallego. has accused Johnson of “protecting pedophiles,” and in a heated argument outside the Speaker’s office last week, he claimed that Johnson was postponing the swearing-in because he didn’t want Grijalva to sign the petition for discharge. Johnson described the accusation as “totally absurd,” claiming that Democrats are “red herring experts.”. “,”.
The impasse might be slowly making its way to the courts. Attorney General Kris Mayes of Arizona threatened legal action on Tuesday to try to compel Grijalva to take the oath of office after the state certified the results of the election.
Grijalva is the daughter of the late Representative, who was her predecessor. Raúl Grijalva, who served in that capacity for over two decades, passed away in March due to lung cancer.
According to Grijalva, once she is seated, she hopes to uphold the high standard her father set for his constituents while in office.
Thinking of what he would think of her struggle to be seated makes her cry.
She remarked, “I think he would just be kind of laughing,” and scratched his head, thinking, “My kid is, you know, making a splash.”. “..”.
Caitlyn Kim of Colorado Public Radio contributed to this story.
