Arizona Democrat Adelita Grijalva Sworn In After Contentious Seven-week Delay

WASHINGTON — More than 7 weeks aft her typical predetermination victory, Arizona Democrat Adelita Grijalva stood connected nan House level and took nan oath of agency Wednesday, marking nan extremity of a bitter standoff pinch GOP Speaker Mike Johnson, who had refused to spot her during nan grounds authorities shutdown.

Johnson swore Grijalva successful arsenic nan House opened Wednesday day to applause from some sides of nan aisle. "Congratulations, you are now a personnel of Congress," he said.

Grijalva's swearing-in shrinks nan GOP mostly to 219-214, wherever conscionable 3 Republican defections tin derail immoderate portion of authorities Johnson brings to nan floor.

Grijalva’s Sept. 23 landslide triumph to switch her precocious father, nan progressive leader Rep. Raul Grijalva, generated fewer nationalist headlines. But successful caller weeks, Democrats publically fought pinch Johnson — successful news conferences, staged protests and a face-to-face impromptu gathering extracurricular his agency — arsenic they tried to unit him to administer nan oath of agency to Grijalva. Arizona’s authorities lawyer wide sued nan House to effort to unit Johnson to return action.

During nan 43-day shutdown — nan longest successful American history — Democrats claimed that Johnson was refusing to spot Grijalva to forestall nan merchandise of nan Justice Department’s files from its Jeffrey Epstein investigation. The Epstein matter has plagued President Donald Trump and his friends connected Capitol Hill, arsenic galore successful his MAGA guidelines clamor for much transparency concerning nan investigation.

Grijalva represents nan 218th signature connected a bipartisan discharge petition, which would let rank-and-file lawmakers to bypass Johnson and his activity squad and unit a level ballot to merchandise files. She has said that signing nan petition will beryllium 1 of her first acts arsenic a personnel of Congress.

Doing truthful will unit nan House to clasp a ballot successful nan coming weeks to compel nan Justice Department to merchandise each of nan files related to its investigation into Epstein. But nan measure is improbable to walk nan Senate aliases beryllium signed into rule by Trump, who has personally urged Republicans to artifact nan discharge push.

Johnson has said nan hold successful swearing successful Grijalva had thing to do pinch nan Epstein petition. The GOP-led House Oversight Committee is already investigating nan Epstein matter, Johnson said, and has been releasing troves of records from some nan authorities and nan Epstein estate, including a caller batch of 20,000 pages connected Wednesday.

Johnson held firm, utilizing Grijalva’s swearing-in arsenic leverage successful nan shutdown conflict and vowing only to committedness successful nan congresswoman-elect erstwhile capable Senate Democrats agreed to reopen nan government.

A fistful of Democrats did conscionable that, joining each but 1 Republican successful nan precocious enclosure connected Monday successful voting to money nan government. The House will ballot later Wednesday connected nan package, which includes 3 full-year national spending bills and extends backing for nan remainder of nan authorities done January.

There could beryllium an awkward brushwood aft Grijalva is sworn successful in nan House chamber, wherever her begetter served for much than 2 decades. As is customary, Johnson has invited Grijalva to a ceremonial swearing-in wherever he will return a photograph pinch nan caller congresswoman and her family.