Overview

• A week after her Sept. 23 special-election victory, Grijalva is in Washington but not sworn in because the House is out of session, leaving her without an office or staff.
• Speaker Mike Johnson’s office says the oath will be scheduled when the House returns next week and calls that standard practice once state paperwork is received.
• Democrats say delaying the oath prevents Grijalva from providing the 218th signature on a discharge petition to compel release of Justice Department records related to Jeffrey Epstein, which she has pledged to sign.
• They point to two Republicans who were sworn in a day after winning special elections while the House was not in session, and GOP Rep. Thomas Massie urged seating her at the earliest eligibility.
• Once sworn in, Grijalva’s addition would further tighten the GOP’s slim House margin and restore representation to a majority‑Latino border district where she is poised to become Arizona’s first Latina in Congress.