(NewsNation) — Democratic members of the House of Representatives have accused House Speaker Mike Johnson and other Republican lawmakers of delaying a vote on releasing the Jeffrey Epstein files.
This comes after Democratic Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva was elected in a special election last week to replace her father, the late Rep. Raul Grijalva.
The House is currently not in its regular session. According to Axios, House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark from Massachusetts suggested that Johnson is purposely stalling votes and Grijalva’s swearing-in, writing in a letter to Johnson that the delay for not bringing the House back from its pro forma session “calls into question if the motive behind the delay is to further avoid the release of the Epstein files.”
Grijalva being sworn in would mean that there will be enough votes to move forward with the vote.
A spokesperson for Johnson told NewsNation affiliate The Hill she will be sworn in on Oct. 7 when the House returns to its regular session