The House’s decisive vote Tuesday to require the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, after President Donald Trump unexpectedly urged Republicans to support it, has thrust the controversy into the center of the 2026 political stage.

Trump spent weeks dismissing the push for disclosure as a Democratic distraction. But on Sunday night, he abruptly told Republicans they should back the measure “because we have nothing to hide,” prompting near-unanimous GOP support. All but one Republican voted for the bill requiring the Justice Department to make the files public.