Congresswoman votes with newborn in arms after ban on proxy voting

Brittany Pettersen, D-Colo., cast a House vote on Tuesday evening with her four-week-old son in her arms, according to a statement she posted on Twitter. Congressional rules bar members from voting remotely, so Pettersen flew across the country after giving birth to her second child to oppose the “big, beautiful” budget bill proposed by House Republicans. The bill, which funds critical pieces of President Donald Trump’s agenda, narrowly passed the House, with all Democrats and one Republican voting against it.

Pettersen is the 14th lawmaker to give birth while in office. Last month, she introduced legislation to allow proxy voting for up to 12 weeks for members who have given birth or whose spouse has given birth, as well as pregnant congresswomen who are unable to travel safely or have a serious medical condition. The bill so far has 137 bipartisan co-sponsors.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., told an NBC reporter last month that he sympathizes with female legislators’ quandary, but has filed a brief with the Supreme Court asserting that proxy voting is unconstitutional.

Has Congress allowed proxy voting before? House Democrats in 2020 made a temporary rule allowing proxy voting to help members avoid risking COVID-19 exposure. Shortly thereafter, dozens of House Republicans, including Johnson, unsuccessfully sued to block the rule. During the period the rule was in effect, Johnson voted by proxy nearly 40 times, according to fellow House member Jim McGovern, D-Mass. Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., ended proxy voting in 2023.