House Democrats are pushing to swear in Rep.-elect James Walkinshaw later today after the Virginia Democrat won a special election Tuesday to succeed the late Rep. Gerry Connolly.
Walkinshaw’s blowout victory will narrow Speaker Mike Johnson’s razor-thin margin to 219 Republicans and 213 Democrats, meaning the GOP can lose no more than two members on a party-line vote.
It’s not clear how quickly Walkinshaw might get sworn in, however. House officials are still waiting for the final election certification papers to be transmitted to Capitol Hill, and Democrats are expecting Johnson to respect the recent precedent of seating special election winners almost immediately upon their victory rather than waiting for final certification from local election officials.
If the papers are transmitted as expected, Walkinshaw could potentially be sworn in by Wednesday afternoon. A spokesperson for Johnson declined to comment.
Walkinshaw will also be the 217th signature on Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Ro Khanna’s (D-Calif.) discharge petition to force a vote on their bipartisan bill to release Jeffrey Epstein-related documents.
Despite a major pressure campaign from the White House, Massie is on track to clinch the 218 signatures to end-run Johnson and force the floor vote. Another Democrat is expected to win a special election in Arizona later this month.