Arizona Sues Johnson to Force Rep.-elect's Oath

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes and Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva filed a federal lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., seeking to force the House of Representatives and Speaker Mike Johnson to swear Grijalva into office after her Sept. 23 special-election win was certified on Oct. 14. The complaint names the House, Clerk Kevin McCumber and Sergeant at Arms William McFarland, cites Powell v. McCormack and asks the court to declare Grijalva a member once she takes the prescribed oath or to permit an alternative authorized official to administer it if the Speaker refuses. Mayes alleges Johnson is unlawfully delaying the swearing-in to block Grijalva from signing a discharge petition that would compel a vote on releasing files related to Jeffrey Epstein and to gain leverage in budget and appropriations negotiations, and that Grijalva would provide the decisive 218th signature. Johnson says the delay reflects the ongoing government shutdown and that he will swear her in when the House returns, calling the lawsuit “patently absurd.” Mayes and Grijalva argue the pause disenfranchises roughly 800,000 Arizonans and amounts to taxation without representation.