House Republicans Reach Deal in Proxy Voting Standoff

A tentative deal on proxy voting for new parents in the US House of Representatives has been reached, potentially ending a dayslong standoff that threatened to delay voting this week on some of the president's legislative priorities. House Speaker Mike Johnson and GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, who is behind the bipartisan proposal, have agreed on a "pairing" system, the AP reports. Rather than actual proxy voting being allowed, this would formalize a system already used in Congress in which a present member's vote cancels out the vote of an absent member (read more about it here). Luna said it can be used not just by new parents, but by the bereaved and anyone facing an emergency.

The resolution had 218 supporters, a majority of the House, but Johnson was firmly in opposition, noting that proxy voting was used during the COVID pandemic and, he said, "quickly abused. Republicans put an end to it then, and we cannot allow it again." Trump, however, took Luna's side. "If we truly want a pro-family Congress, these are the changes that need to happen," Luna said after the deal was announced. She also thanked Trump for his support, CNN reports. Johnson says he is looking to increase accessibility for new mothers in Congress in other ways, including by potentially adding a nursing room, the Hill reports. (This content was created with the help of AI. Read our AI policy.)