The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday voted 427-1 to release the Jeffrey Epstein files and send the discharge petition to the Senate in a move aimed to reveal more information about the disgraced late financier and convicted sex offender and his potential ties to other powerful entities.
The landmark bill marks a major victory for the survivors, who have waited years for the first steps towards justice. Survivors and family members watched as congressional leaders voted to prompt the Department of Justice to release the material collected in Florida, New York and New Mexico related to Epstein. Cheers sounded from the gallery after the vote, with only one nay vote.
President Donald Trump has worked for weeks to try and block a vote in the House to release the files. He reversed course on Sunday after calling on Republicans to support it.
Critics have argued his shift could be part of a ploy to protect himself by having only a portion of the files made public.
Trump, who has not been accused of misconduct, has been mentioned throughout email exchanges with Epstein in newly released emails from the Epstein estate that suggested the president may have had knowledge of the abuse under Epstein and his confidant, Ghislaine Maxwell.
The vote comes after a months-long effort from Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Ro Khanna (D-CA) to collect 218 signatures on what’s known as a discharge petition, a tool to circumvent House leadership and force a vote on a particular measure on the House floor. That measure is a bill that, if signed into law by Trump, would force the DOJ to release every file it has on Epstein, of which tens of thousands – if not more – are believed to exist.
Much of the files the DOJ currently holds on Epstein were collected during 2019 raids by law enforcement on Epstein’s properties, including his New York home – riddled with cameras – where law enforcement seized hundreds of lewd photos and other evidence, including CDs with hand-written labels with phrases like “Young [Name] + [Name],” and his private island.
Recent reporting also revealed this month that Epstein had done extensive diplomatic work on behalf of the Israeli government, including helping broker a defense agreement between Israel and the West African nation Côte d'Ivoire, helping broker a security cooperation agreement between Israel and Mongolia, and helping establish a backchannel between Israel and Russia amid the Syrian Civil War.
Epstein was accused of abusing dozens of victims in both Florida and New York, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. He died by suicide in jail. Authorities say he recruited the girls and enticed them to visit his mansion in New York City and his estate in West Palm Beach, Florida.