The House is expected to vote next week on the long-awaited full release of the Justice Department’s files on the late sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
Though the exact timing remains unclear, GOP leadership is already on edge. Four Republicans — along with all 213 House Democrats — have already signed the discharge petition, giving it the majority needed to force a vote. And more support may be on the way: Some Republicans, including Tennessee Rep. Tim Burchett, have said they’ll back the measure once it hits the floor. Five people familiar with internal discussions told Politico they expect dozens of GOP members — potentially 100 or more — to ultimately vote for it.
Here’s a closer look at the Republicans who broke ranks and signed the petition.
Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie
Massie isn’t just backing the push to release the Epstein files — he’s leading it. He co-wrote the disclosure bill with Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna and filed the discharge petition, a procedural tool used for bypassing House leadership. After the petition crossed the 218-signature threshold, Massie immediately called for a vote, arguing that the Justice Department should be compelled to release the files within 30 days.
He has also been one of the loudest voices predicting bipartisan support. Massie told CNN’s Manu Raju that the number of Republicans willing to vote for the bill “could snowball,” adding that several have already privately assured his office they’ll back the effort. Despite pushback from GOP leadership and the White House, Massie has framed the disclosure as a matter of transparency and accountability — and says he intends to see it through. “We all deserve to know what’s in the Epstein files, who’s implicated, and how deep this corruption goes,” said Massie in a statement.
And his stance has come at a political cost. Trump attacked the seven-term lawmaker over the effort, calling for his immediate removal from Congress and throwing his support behind challenger Ed Gallrein.
Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert
Boebert, who says she’s a co-sponsor of the petition, has made clear she’s firmly in the pro-disclosure camp. She’s vowed to vote for the discharge petition and has repeatedly said she has no intention of taking her name off it, even as pressure has mounted.
On Thursday, she met with senior White House and Justice Department officials who, according to multiple reports, urged her to reconsider, but she declined.
Later that same day, she told Colorado-based CPR News that she “loves the White House” but emphasized that “adults are allowed to have conversations,” adding that she never felt pressured to withdraw her name. Boebert has framed the effort as a matter of transparency and insists she intends to stand by it.
Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene
Greene was an early and vocal supporter of forcing the release of the Epstein files. In a July post on X, she called herself a co-sponsor of the bill and said she was “proudly” signing Massie’s discharge petition, adding that she “will never protect pedophiles or the elites and their circles.”
Once the petition crossed the threshold this week, she applauded the progress, saying the files should be released in full — “every name, every page, every connection.” At the same time, she pushed back on allegations involving Trump, arguing that Democrats are overstating his ties and noting that “the victims themselves have said he was not involved.”
Once a MAGA diehard, Greene has increasingly broken with her own party over issues like rising healthcare premiums. She has also gone directly after the president, faulting him for focusing too heavily on foreign affairs instead of tackling inflation at home — prompting him to say she had “lost her way.”
South Carolina Rep. Nancy Mace
Mace has said she signed the discharge petition in solidarity with sexual assault and abuse survivors. In a post on X on Wednesday, she called the effort “deeply personal,” citing her own experience with sexual violence: “I will NEVER abandon other survivors.”
As the petition neared the final signature, she and Trump ended up playing phone tag amid online rumors that she might pull her name — something she ultimately did not do. “We will not back down. We will not be silenced. We will HOLD THE LINE,” she wrote in a separate post on X.
Even with Trump’s ties to Epstein back in the spotlight, Mace continues to describe herself as a fierce supporter of the president. And as a Republican running for governor in South Carolina, she knows the president’s base will be central to her chances — especially on a high-profile issue like the Epstein files, where many Republicans have voiced frustration with how Trump has handled it.
What happens next?
Whether these four stay firm — and whether they can bring others with them — will determine how much of a rebellion the GOP faces when the bill hits the floor. The question now is whether they’ll hold their ground or whether party and presidential pressure will ultimately convince them to stand down.
