Two moderate House Democrats defied House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Tuesday, handing Republicans a critical procedural victory during the final week before the November midterms.

Reps. Jared Golden of Maine and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington crossed party lines to keep the House moving.

Golden and Gluesenkamp Perez voted alongside Republicans on a procedural hurdle known as a “rule vote.”

The successful vote allowed the House to consider several other bills during the week.

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The result delivered an embarrassing blow to Jeffries and his leadership team.

Members of the minority party almost never break ranks to help the majority approve a rule, even when they support the legislation that the rule would bring forward.

The two Democrats effectively rescued Republicans from what could have become an embarrassing defeat just before voters head to the polls.

Their decision also exposed another public crack in the Democratic caucus under Jeffries.

BOOM 💥

Kudos to the (2) Dems who broke rank and voted with the majority on a "rules vote" allowing Speaker Johnson to consider a slew of bills this wk Hakeem Jeffries is reportedly livid at Rep Jared Golden & Marie Perez for helping advance an anti-socialism vote Love this pic.twitter.com/Upz6GKUh52 — @Chicago1Ray 🇺🇸 (@Chicago1Ray) September 16, 2026

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Golden’s spokesman told Fox News Digital that the Maine congressman cast his vote to advance a Russia sanctions bill.

According to the spokesman, that legislation would have effectively died if the Tuesday evening rule vote had failed.

“Congressman Golden has been a consistent supporter of America’s allies in Ukraine. He didn’t want to see the Russia sanctions bill die in a rule vote after passing with overwhelming bipartisan support in the Senate,” the spokesman said.

The Washington Democrat addressed her decision in a lengthy post on X, pointing to her district’s Ukrainian community and the Senate’s support for the sanctions legislation.

“I’m proud to represent one of the largest Ukrainian communities in America-people who have lost fathers, mothers, sons and daughters in the fight to defeat fascism. I’ll always stand with my community’s values, and am grateful for the 86 senators who voted to send this bill to the house. My vote today gets us one step closer to enacting these sanctions into law and I look forward to voting tomorrow to cut off the flow of Russian oil money fueling this war.”

I’m proud to represent one of the largest Ukrainian communities in America-people who have lost fathers, mothers, sons and daughters in the fight to defeat fascism.

I’ll always stand with my community’s values, and am grateful for the 86 senators who voted to send this bill to… — Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (@RepMGP) September 15, 2026

Tuesday’s revolt was not the first time Golden and Gluesenkamp Perez had voted against their party on a House rule.

They also broke ranks several weeks earlier, a move that provoked particular fury among fellow Democrats because it involved a procedural vote.

Both lawmakers have previously split from other Democrats.

Their willingness to help Republicans advance a rule, however, turned an occasional policy disagreement into a direct challenge to the caucus leadership’s ability to keep members in line.

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The latest defection also fueled questions about whether Jeffries could control his members if Democrats retake the House in November.

Jeffries could be elected as the next speaker if his party secures the majority.

Jeffries and his top deputies responded sharply after the pair’s previous procedural rebellion.

Their statement accused Golden and Gluesenkamp Perez of blindsiding the Democratic caucus and joining Republicans when the majority’s rule was close to failing.

“The decision by two of our colleagues to blindside the entire House Democratic Caucus and join with the Republican majority to pass a procedural rule on the brink of failing represents a significant breach of trust. It is an action that necessitates a serious response, and we have asked the Committee on Caucus Rules to take this up in short order.”

It remains unclear whether any punishment resulted from that earlier warning.

Jeffries later threatened to pursue a “serious response” against the two lawmakers during an appearance on “The Don Lemon Show” after they broke with the party.

The political circumstances facing the two rebels are also notably different.

Golden is retiring from Congress at the end of this year, while Gluesenkamp Perez is confronting her toughest election yet against a Republican challenger.

Gluesenkamp Perez represents a Washington state district that voted for President Donald Trump in 2024.

Her latest split from Democratic leaders came only weeks before that district’s voters decide whether to return her to Congress.

For Republicans, the Democratic defections prevented a procedural embarrassment and allowed the Russia sanctions bill to proceed.

For Jeffries, the episode delivered another unwelcome test of party discipline at a moment when he is asking voters to place Democrats back in control of the House.

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