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A little-known congressional move could prevent members of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) party from being sworn in as members of the House of Representatives next year, even if they win their elections on Tuesday.
Elected members must take an oath to uphold the Constitution before they can become full members of the House. At the start of a new Congress, this oath is typically taken en masse by all 435 members, led by the Speaker of the House.
But an argument circulating in conservative circles posits that any elected member can challenge another elected member’s right to take the oath, provided they have gathered evidence that that person would not uphold their oath. This would then lead to House-wide deliberations, followed by a vote on whether that elected member has the right to take the oath of office.
In the case of DSA members, one potential argument could be the group’s agenda calling for abandoning the current U.S. Constitution and drafting a new one. Several DSA members and self-described democratic socialists have already won primaries across the country.
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Democratic socialist Darializa Avila Chevalier has faced backlash from the right over past comments about wiping her hands on an American flag. (Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images; Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Rep. Keith Self, R-Texas, suggested to Fox News Digital that he might invoke this maneuver.
“You cannot take an oath to support and defend the Constitution while actively working to destroy it. The oath of office is not just words you say in a ceremony. It’s a belief. It’s an oath to our country and our countrymen,” Self told Fox News Digital.
“The House has both the authority and the duty to ensure that anyone taking the oath of office does so in good faith, without mental reservation or intent to evade. As DSA candidates and the Red-Green Alliance gain traction, we must uphold the Constitution as it is written, or we risk allowing those determined to replace it to rise to power under false pretenses.”
The “Red-Green Alliance” is a term used on the right to describe cooperation between far-left groups and radical Islamic organizations or operators.
“Anyone who personally agreed to the destruction of the Constitution does not have to take an oath to uphold it,” Self said.
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According to an analysis by the Center for Renewing America, a challenge to an elected member’s fitness to take the oath of office can be followed by the House speaker asking them to step aside while debate begins.
“The opposing member should present the documentary record before the House, and the House should debate whether this evidence establishes that the elected member remains committed to destroying the constitutional order,” the group’s analysis says.
Rep. Keith Self, R-Texas, arrives at the House Republican Conference caucus meeting at the Capitol Hill Club in Washington on Wednesday, May 13, 2026. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
The House would then vote on a resolution that “establishes the elected members’ commitment to destroy the constitutional order,” which, if passed, could prevent them from taking the oath of office.
The theory relies on a number of variables. For example, if House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., is elected president, he could decide to reject the challenge altogether. Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., could do the same if he wants if Republicans maintain their majority.
Johnson told reporters at an event this month in Iowa, calling the idea of his refusal to seat Democratic lawmakers an “absurd narrative” and vowing, “We’re going to follow the law.”
It would also raise questions about challenging the will of the people who elected this person to represent them.
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Such a decision would also be in direct conflict with Supreme Court precedent, meaning it is virtually guaranteed to be challenged again.
The 1969 case Powell v. McCormack ruled that the House could not exclude an elected candidate from taking the oath of office if he or she otherwise met the constitutional requirements of age, residency and U.S. citizenship.
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This comes after Adam Clayton Powell Jr., then a high-ranking lawmaker representing New York as a Democrat, was denied his oath of office by the Speaker of the House after winning again in 1966. Powell Jr. had been involved in multiple financial scandals at the time.
The House then passed a resolution barring him from sitting, a decision that was ultimately overturned by the Supreme Court.
But that did not stop Republicans from considering the idea of reversing this decision.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson speaks to reporters at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC, September 2. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., told the New York Post earlier this month that he would use the maneuver to try to prevent Darializa Avila Chevalier from joining Congress next year.
Chevalier, whose upset victory unseated a leading House Democrat, hails from a deep blue district and will almost certainly win his general election next week.
Burchett told the Post he intended to rule her ineligible to take the oath of office over a now-deleted 2019 X-rated post in which she bragged about wiping her hands on the American flag because she didn’t have a napkin.
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Whether these efforts succeed, the threats underscore the partisan rancor that is taking shape even before the new Congress is officially selected in next week’s midterms.
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