Nine House Republicans voted against House Speaker Mike Johnson‘s plan to block proxy voting for new parents on Tuesday.
Why It Matters
Representative Anna Paulina Luna, a Florida Republican, alongside Representative Brittany Peterson, a Colorado Democrat, have pushed to change House rules to allow new parents to vote by proxy for up to 12 weeks around the birth of a baby.
While a majority of Republicans remain opposed to the change, enough broke rank to buck the efforts of Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, to kill her efforts to allow proxy voting for these parents, handing him a public legislative defeat.
What To Know
Johnson, who has opposed proxy voting, attempted to quash the effort on Tuesday, but his measure failed by a vote of 222 to 206.
Every House Democrat voted against the measure alongside the following nine Republicans.
- Tim Burchett of Tennessee
- Kevin Kiley of California
- Nick LaLota of New York
- Mike Lawler of New York
- Anna Paulina Luna of Florida
- Ryan Mackenzie of Pennsylvania
- Max Miller of Ohio
- Greg Steube of Florida
- Jeff Van Drew of New Jersey
Republicans moved to end proxy voting in 2023, after retaking control of the House of Representatives. Luna had received at least 218 signatures on a discharge position and earlier sought to bring the rule to a vote, but Johnson held a procedural vote to block it.
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
The issue has divided conservatives, with Luna leaving the House Freedom Caucus over clashing on the measure.
What People Are Saying
Johnson, to reporters: “It was a very disappointing result on the floor there. A handful of Republicans joined with all the Democrats to take down a rule, that’s rarely done. It’s very unfortunate in this case. Ninety-six percent of House Republicans voted against proxy voting because they believe it’s unconstitutional and they believe that it would open a Pandora’s box, so that’s what we just saw.”
When reached by Newsweek, a spokesperson pointed to his previous statement.
Luna, on X: “Republicans have had the majority, as well as the ability to bring legislation to the floor on election integrity and rogue judges, for months.
Yet, at the last minute, leadership chose to tie my discharge petition to a rules package that would permanently paint me and the members supporting it as being anti-election integrity.
Leadership should stop playing political games with President Trump’s agenda.
They can bring any of the legislation to the floor. Why would they send Congress home? They’re not serious about anything they are messaging on.
I’m not in the business of lying about what is happening in DC.”
Lawler, on X: “Regardless of how one feels about a discharge petition, this is a step that drastically limits the power of individual members and vests it almost entirely in leadership.
Furthermore, as the father of two young daughters, I fully support Rep. Luna’s proposed rules change — a pro-life, pro-family measure — that would allow proxy voting for new parents for a limited period of time. It is 2025 and we can easily work out language to safely allow members to represent their districts and vote while raising their new family.”
What Happens Next
Johnson canceled sessions for the rest of the week, the AP reported.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
