A bipartisan group of House members is closing in on the 218 signatures needed to force a floor vote on legislation that would compel the Justice Department to release remaining government files related to Jeffrey Epstein, a move that could proceed over objections from former President Donald Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson.
The discharge petition championed by Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., had 216 signatures at the time Massie briefed reporters, and he said the petition would reach the required threshold once two expected Democratic winners fill vacant seats in Virginia and Arizona. "We don't need any more signatures," Massie told a throng of reporters. "We're going to get to vacancies filled and they'll sign it. We'll be at 218 and then people, instead of deciding whether they should sign this discharge petition or not, have got to decide whether they're going to vote for it or not vote for it."
If the petition reaches 218 signatures, the discharge procedure would allow the bill directing the Department of Justice to release its remaining Epstein-related records to go to the House floor regardless of GOP leadership's wishes. The measure would require the DOJ to post unseen files online within 30 days, with statutory carve-outs intended to protect victims' privacy.
Massie and Khanna have marshaled support from members of both parties and have highlighted testimony and the perspectives of survivors in public events. They held a press conference last week with nearly a dozen survivors of Epstein's abuse. Federal prosecutors have said Epstein abused more than 1,000 individuals and have identified Ghislaine Maxwell as the only co-conspirator in his crimes.
The petition's advance cuts against public positions taken by Trump and Johnson, who have criticized the effort. The White House has expressed a desire to see the Epstein matter dropped, according to officials, while Johnson has signaled concerns about preserving his control of the House floor. Massie's push has drawn signatures from House members across ideological lines, including hardline Republicans who maintain close ties to the White House. Representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., and Nancy Mace, R-S.C., are among those who have signed the petition.
Trump could seek to persuade signees to withdraw their names, aides and allies say, and Johnson could attempt parliamentary maneuvers to block the petition, though how leadership would do so was unclear.
Two pending special elections are central to the petition's prospects. A special election to fill Virginia's 11th Congressional District, the seat of the late Rep. Gerry Connolly, is scheduled for Tuesday; James Walkinshaw, Connolly's former chief of staff, is widely expected to win and has told Axios he would sign the petition if sworn in. Arizona's 7th Congressional District is holding a special election on Sept. 23; Adelita Grijalva, who is running for her late father's seat, has pledged to back the discharge petition.
The Oversight Committee has already received and published a substantial body of material: the Justice Department has turned over roughly 32,000 pages of Epstein-related documents to the committee, and Epstein's estate recently handed over another trove of files to Congress. That release included information related to a 50th birthday book for Epstein that contained a letter attributed to Trump; the administration has said the letter is a hoax.
Supporters of the petition say the release would deliver transparency for survivors and the public, while opponents say they are concerned about potential harm to victims and about congressional overreach into ongoing matters. The bill before the House, if enacted, would allow the public online access to records the committee has not released, with statutory exceptions intended to safeguard victims.
With the petition close to the 218-signature threshold, the timing and outcome of the two special elections will likely determine whether the House must take a vote. Massie said the petition could reach the required number of signatures by the end of September, after which members who have signed would face a direct decision on whether to vote for or against the measure on the floor.