Luna uses rare maneuver to try to force vote on allowing proxy voting for new parents

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) introduced a rare motion Monday seeking to force a vote on proxy voting after she struggled to balance the responsibilities of being a lawmaker and a new parent in the last legislative cycle.

Her discharge petition for H.R. 164 is backed by 92 representatives but would need 126 additional signatures to cross the required threshold to force a vote on the legislation. 

Luna’s initiative has bipartisan support, with signatures from Reps. Sarah McBride (D-Del.), Lucy McBath (D-Ga.), Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) and Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) among others.

The Florida representative filed a similar discharge petition during the 118th Congress, which only received six lawmakers signing off on the measure.

“No parent should have to choose between caring for their child, or recovering from childbirth, and fulfilling their duties in Congress to represent their constituents,” Luna said in a statement last year. 

“Congress needs to get with the times. This bipartisan proposal is vital in promoting a pro-family Washington, where every American has a voice and the unwavering representation they deserve.”

Her words were later echoed by Rep. Brittany Pettersen (D-Colo.), who also recently gave birth.

Pettersen has long urged her colleagues to allow her to vote remotely. Last month, she went to the Capitol with her 6-week-old son in arm to vote on legislation including the GOP budget resolution.

“Unfortunately, Republican Leadership denied my ability to vote remotely after giving birth to my son, Sam, but that’s not stopping us from showing up to vote NO on this disastrous budget proposal,” she wrote in a post on social platform X. 

Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) allowed proxy voting during the COVID-19 pandemic, which was criticized by Republicans due to concerns about the potential for frivolous absences.

Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) said some officials used proxy voting to attend fundraisers or go on vacations in the past, but he has signed on to support Luna’s discharge petition.