The vote was overwhelmingly in favor, 427–1. Six people abstained, while Republican Clay Higgins of Louisiana delivered the no vote. He justified his position on X by saying that disclosure would “harm thousands of innocent people.”
In order for the Justice Department to actually be forced to release the so-called Epstein documents, it also needs to be approved by the Senate. President Donald Trump also needs to sign the bill, which he has said he is ready to do.
According to Senate Majority Leader, Republican John Thune, a vote there could take place "fairly soon," perhaps as early as Tuesday, CNN reports.
"It's a possibility. We'll get what the Democrats say," Thune told reporters.
No changes in the Senate
It is then also likely that the proposal will be presented without amendments, something House Speaker Mike Johnson would have liked to see.
There are some things he would like to change, but with a 427-1 vote, it is unlikely that will happen, Thune said.
Johnson said earlier on Tuesday that he hopes the proposal will be changed because, according to him, the privacy of victims is not sufficiently protected in the current draft.
Congress should give the attorney general broader authority to mask information about victims, he said.
The documents have become a contentious issue and Trump, who opposed their release, swung as recently as Sunday.
Democrats but also Republicans such as Thomas Massie and Marjorie Taylor Greene have recently loudly demanded disclosure.
“Terrible fight”
Before the vote, several politicians held a joint press conference with some of Epstein's victims outside the congressional building, writes AP.
"These women have fought a terrible fight that no woman should have to fight. And they did it by sticking together and never giving up," said Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has been loyal to Trump but has been a fierce critic of him in recent weeks.
We stood up by fighting hard against the most powerful people in the world, even the President of the United States, to get today's vote.
Jena-Lisa Jones, who met Epstein at the age of 14, said she was exhausted, not only by what she had been exposed to but also by the political conflict now:
I beg you Donald Trump, please stop politicizing this.
