The US House of Representatives has collected the necessary number of signatures for a special petition that allows a bill on new military aid to Ukraine and sanctions against Russia to be put to a vote without the support of Speaker Mike Johnson. This was reported by NYT and Reuters.
To start the procedure, it was necessary to collect 218 signatures of congressmen. The bill, authored by Democratic Party member Gregory Meeks, did not advance for several months due to the lack of support from the leadership of the House of Representatives. The required number was only one signature short.
On May 13, independent lawmaker Kevin Kaley joined the initiative, after which supporters of the document were able to bypass the leadership of the House of Representatives and achieve official consideration of the bill.
“Recent successes in Ukraine have created a window of opportunity for peace, but the breakdown of the latest ceasefire has proven that leverage is needed for diplomacy to succeed,” Kaley said.
The discharge petition procedure allows lawmakers to force the House of Representatives to hold a vote even if the speaker does not want to put the document on the agenda. It is expected that the bill may be considered in late May.
H.R. 2913 was filed in April 2025. It provides for the allocation of $1.3 billion in security assistance to Ukraine, as well as up to $8 billion in additional support in the form of direct loans.
In addition, the bill contains provisions on replenishing US arms stocks, mechanisms for financing Ukraine’s post-war reconstruction, and new sanctions against Russia.
After Donald Trump returned to the White House in January 2025, some Republicans began to be more cautious about supporting Ukraine, which slowed the pace of adoption of new aid packages. At the same time, significant bipartisan support for Ukraine still remains in Congress, which made it possible to collect the necessary signatures for forced consideration of the bill.
