House swears in Utah Republican Celeste Maloy

Rep. Celeste Maloy (R-Utah) was sworn into the House on Tuesday, officially succeeding former Rep. Chris Stewart (R-Utah), her ex-boss, in the chamber.

Maloy’s swearing in brings the House back to full attendance with all 435 members in the chamber.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) administered the oath of office to Maloy on the House floor Tuesday evening, while she was surrounded by members of the Utah delegation.

“We are grateful to the voters of Utah’s 2nd District for sending a clear message and electing Celeste Maloy to Congress,” Johnson said in a statement. “She will be a great asset to our Conference, and we are excited to begin working with her.”

Maloy won a special election to succeed Stewart in the House last week, beating state Sen. Kathleen Riebe (D), the No. 2 Democrat in the Utah Senate, to represent Utah’s 2nd Congressional District in Congress.

Stewart, who had served in the House since 2013, announced in May that he would resign from the House, citing his wife’s health issues.

“It has been one of the great honors of my life to serve the good people of Utah in Congress,” Stewart said in a statement at the time. “My wife and I have made so many dear friends and memories throughout our journey. I can say with pride that I have been an effective leader for my beloved home state, and I’m honored to have played an important role in guiding our nation through some troubled times.”

While the House is now at full occupancy, it may not remain that way for too long. The chamber this week is set to vote on a resolution to expel Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.), which could be successful after the Ethics Committee released a report that said the embattled lawmaker “violated federal criminal laws.”