Kevin Kiley declines to vote on Epstein probe. Here’s his explanation
Rep. Kevin Kiley declined to vote yes or no on a House Republican plan expressing support for an ongoing House investigation of sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein’s activities — a plan widely derided by Democrats and many conservatives as weak and meaningless.
While 208 of his Republican colleagues voted for the measure, Kiley, R-Roseville, was the only GOP lawmaker to vote “present,” which is neither a yes or no.
He said his vote was a statement against how the measure was presented, as it mixed procedural and substantive issues. It was tucked into a rule governing how several different topics would be debated.
“I don’t like having these very divergent topics wrapped into the same rule, especially when the rule actually has a substantive effect as opposed to merely a procedural effect,” he said at a Capitol Hill news conference.
“This redistricting issue is time-sensitive and so when we’re bringing other things to the floor that are not time-sensitive and not bringing that to the floor, I have an issue with that as well,” he said. Kiley has proposed legislation that would bar mid-decade redistricting — such as the California plan that would put him in a Democratic-friendly district.
Kiley on Thursday got a taste of what could be the future as Rep. John Garamendi, D-Vallejo, tore into Kiley.
“Yesterday, Kevin Kiley refused to support releasing the Epstein files,” Garamendi said on X. “He’s proven himself to be nothing more than a MAGA loyalist — so desperate to hold onto his seat that he’ll protect pedophiles instead of standing with victims.
“Do the right thing. Release the files,” Garamendi said.
Wednesday’s House vote came as House GOP leaders, under pressure from President Donald Trump, have been scrambling for weeks to avoid a tougher vote that would require the release of Epstein-related documents.
Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Santa Clara, are circulating a “discharge petition” to force that vote.
The petition needs 218 signatures to force a floor vote, but as of Thursday remained short. While all 212 Democrats are expected to sign, four Republicans have joined.
Kiley on Epstein
Kiley is undecided whether to sign.
“I’m looking at it,” he said. “I think that the central issue for me is whether the protections for victims are adequate. I’ve heard very differing views of that question. We’re trying to get to the bottom of that.”
No California Republicans had signed the petition as of The Bee’s deadline. Reps. Tom McClintock, R-Elk Grove, and David Valadao, R-Hanford, did not respond to requests for comment.
Among California Democrats signing the petition were Reps. Doris Matsui, D-Sacramento, Salud Carbajal, D-Santa Barbara, Ami Bera, D-Sacramento, Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, Jim Costa, D-Fresno and Adam Gray, D-Merced.
“The victims deserve justice, and the American people deserve the truth. Release the files,” Carbajal said on X.
Kiley and redistricting
Kiley also wanted to call attention Wednesday to his bill to ban mid-decade congressional redistricting.
He represents a district that stretches from east of Sacramento to the Lake Tahoe region and beyond, and stands to lose a big chunk of Republican-dominated territory if voters approve the proposed Democratic-driven redistricting plan in November.
The second-term congressman’s district would stretch deeper into the Sacramento area, and analysts say it would become a likely pickup for a Democratic contender. Bera is considering running in that district.
“I think we really need to attend to this redistricting issue promptly,” Kiley said, since it’s time-sensitive.
A ‘meaningless’ vote?
The measure, which Massie derided as “meaningless,” was put to a vote Wednesday, and directs the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee to continue its investigation of Epstein-related matters. It passed on a party-line 212 to 208 vote.
Massie, who voted for the bill, nevertheless protested, saying on X that the “White House says helping me secure a vote to release all the Epstein files is a ‘hostile act,’” and that “they’re threatening anyone who helps bring true transparency and justice for the survivors.”
Clearly, the congressman said, “this is a tacit admission the Oversight Committee data release is woefully incomplete.”
The six-page bill the House passed Wednesday says the committee will continue its “ongoing investigation into the possible mismanagement of the Federal Government’s investigation of Mr. Jeffrey Epstein and Ms. Ghislaine Maxwell,” his associate.
It also will continue to look at “the circumstances and subsequent investigations of Mr. Epstein’s death, the operation of sex-trafficking rings and ways for the federal government to effectively combat them,” and other matters.
House Republican leaders and President Donald Trump put huge pressure Wednesday on Republicans not to sign the Massie-Khanna petition.
“It’s really a Democrat hoax, because they’re trying to get people to talk about something that’s totally irrelevant to the success we’ve had as a nation since I’ve been president,” Trump told reporters.
Epstein died in 2019 by suicide while in prison awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. Republicans and Democrats have strongly urged the release of material showing who else was involved in Epstein’s activities.
Earlier this year, the Trump administration said earlier this year no such list exists, but conservative House members and Democrats are insisting on release of what materials exist.
This story was originally published September 3, 2025 at 2:07 PM.
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