Press Releases

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Representative Brittany Pettersen (CO-07) – alongside Representative Sara Jacobs (CA-51) – took action to advance her bipartisan Proxy Voting for New Parents Resolution by noticing her intent to discharge, forcing a vote following opposition from Republican leadership. Under current House Rules, the Speaker must bring forward the discharge petition for a vote within two legislative days. 

“Today, we noticed our intent to discharge to force a vote on our bipartisan resolution to allow parents to vote while they are taking care of their newborn child,” said Pettersen. “Speaker Johnson has gone to historic lengths to stifle our voices – even after we followed the rules and collected 218 signatures on our discharge petition to force a vote. This move is anti-woman, anti-family, and anti-parent. While Republican Leadership is out of touch on this issue, there is a large majority of Members in Congress who want to change the way we do things. Thanks to all my colleagues who stood with us. We know our fight is far from over, and I promise to keep working alongside you to make Congress more accessible for young families and regular people.” 

After Republican Leadership refused to move forward with their bipartisan legislation, the Members used a rare procedural move called a discharge petition, collecting 218 signatures from a majority of the House. 

This procedural tool is used to bypass Leadership and force a vote on the floor. However, despite broad bipartisan support, Speaker Johnson went to extreme lengths to block the measure from advancing. The Members defeated Johnson’s attempts to kill the discharge petition last week, bringing legislative business to a halt.