Adelita Grijalva expects to finally be sworn in to Congress after long delay

Washington DC - Representative-elect Adelita Grijalva has said she expects to finally take her seat in the US House this week.

Representative-elect Adelita Grijalva of Arizona says she expects to be sworn in to Congress this week.
Representative-elect Adelita Grijalva of Arizona says she expects to be sworn in to Congress this week.  © Rebecca Noble / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

"So it looks like I'm going to get sworn in this week. After seven weeks of waiting, I almost can't believe it's true," Grijalva said in a video message on Monday.

Grijalva won the September 23 special election to represent Arizona's 7th congressional district in the US House, but she has not been able to take her seat, as House Speaker Mike Johnson has not yet sworn her in.

The former Pima County supervisor is the eldest daughter of Raúl Grijalva, who served in the House from 2003 until his death due to complications during cancer treatment earlier this year.

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The extended delay of Grijalva's swearing-in prompted the State of Arizona to sue the House last month, with Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes accusing Johnson of "actively stripping the people of Arizona of one of their seats in Congress and disenfranchising the voters of Arizona’s seventh Congressional district in the process."

Even as she is excited to take her seat, Grijalva expressed disappointment with a stopgap funding bill passed by the Senate on Monday. The legislation would restore funding for the SNAP food aid program but would not renew vital health care subsidies set to expire at the end of the year – a core Democratic demand.

"I'm really upset that one of the first votes that I will take is on a bill that does nothing for affordable health care for the American people," Grijalva said in her video.

Adelita Grijalva takes aim at Mike Johnson

Grijalva on Monday once again took aim at Johnson for delaying her swearing-in.

"I also have to say that we have to do something to make sure that one person can't silence the voices of 813,000 people," said the representative-elect.

"This can never happen again to another member-elect that is waiting in the wings because someone doesn't want to do their job or because they're playing politics."

Cover photo: Rebecca Noble / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

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