A discharge petition to force a vote on releasing files related to Jeffrey Epstein, spearheaded by Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Ro Khanna (D-CA), secured the 218th signature on Wednesday. Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D-AZ) became the 218th signee after being sworn in. “Today we will have the 218th vote for the Epstein discharge petition. Here’s how the legislation is likely to proceed over the next few weeks, with a debate and floor vote occurring just after the Thanksgiving break. How will your Congressman vote?” Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) said. “Correction: I should have said 218th signature,” he noted. Correction: I should have said 218th signature. — Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) November 12, 2025 “Today, I was officially sworn in as your Representative for Arizona’s 7th Congressional District,” Grijalva said. Today, I was officially sworn in as your Representative for Arizona’s 7th Congressional District. I am ready to work, fight, and win for us. Stay in the conversation and follow our official account @Rep_Grijalva pic.twitter.com/mS3ubJxl9X — Adelita Grijalva (@AdelitaForAZ) November 12, 2025 CNN has more: After her formal swearing in, Grijalva provided the 218th – and final – signature needed on the discharge petition to force such a vote and, in turn, trigger a number of procedural steps before the House can vote on a bill compelling the files’ release. As a refresher, a discharge petition is a critical tool at rank-and-file members’ disposal. Under the arcane procedure, if 218 members of the House – a majority of all 435 districts – sign one, they can force a floor vote in the chamber on anything — even if leadership opposes it. Such an effort rarely succeeds. Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky has joined with Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California to spearhead this particular discharge petition, but while Grijalva provided the decisive signature, the effort faces a number of hurdles — and the bill is unlikely to become law. Even if the effort passes in the House, the measure must still make it through the Senate and obtain President Trump’s signature. Grijalva joined all Democrats and four Republicans in the discharge petition. Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY), Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), Lauren Boebert (R-CO), and Nancy Mace (R-SC) are the four Republicans who signed the petition. Speaker Mike Johnson says the Epstein discharge petition will get a vote on the House floor next week. Source: Axios pic.twitter.com/EtyAS4cvp1 — Politics & Poll Tracker (@PollTracker2024) November 12, 2025 The Hill noted: House rules stipulate that the petition will have to “ripen” for at least seven legislative days. After that, a member can provide notice of the intent to discharge the legislation, at which point the Speaker must schedule a vote within two legislative days. Republican leadership has the option to try to “turn off” the procedural mechanism in the discharge petition that would allow members to force a vote before having to call up the underlying bill. Leaders successfully scuttled another discharge petition earlier this year, after Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) got 218 signatures on her discharge petition to allow new parents to vote by proxy for a period after their child’s birth. To “turn off” a discharge petition, leaders can add language to procedural legislation called a rule that sets the terms of debate for another piece of legislation — essentially daring the GOP defectors who signed the discharge petition to vote against it and hold up other GOP priorities in the process. Rules typically succeed in party-line votes and are a test of party loyalty. In that case, the success of the Epstein resolution would be a question of political will in the face of other procedural hurdles. If all 218 signatories — including the four Republicans who signed — are dedicated to forcing action on the discharge petition, they can do so.