VALHALLA, N.Y. – Representative Jamaal Bowman of New York unintentionally set off a fire alarm in a Congressional office building on Saturday while elected officials were preparing to vote on a spending bill to prevent a potential government shutdown. Republicans have accused Bowman of trying to delay the vote and are calling for consequences, but the Democrat explained that the incident occurred as he was hurrying to cast his vote and came across a closed door that is typically open. “I am embarrassed to admit that I activated the fire alarm, mistakenly thinking it would open the door,” he stated. “I regret this and sincerely apologize for any confusion this caused.”

Bowman made it clear that he had no intention of holding up the House vote. “It was the exact opposite — I was urgently trying to get to a vote, which I ultimately did and joined my colleagues in a bipartisan effort to keep our government open.” According to the Associated Press, the fire alarm went off while House Democrats were hoping to delay a vote on the Republicans’ proposed 71-page stopgap spending measure so they could have more time to review the bill. Ultimately, both chambers passed a spending bill, and President Biden signed it just before the midnight deadline, avoiding a government shutdown.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a Republican from California, suggested that Bowman intentionally triggered the fire alarm to force a government shutdown and called for the House Ethics Committee to investigate the incident. McCarthy also referenced the Capitol building riot on January 6, 2021, where individuals stormed the building to disrupt the certification of Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election. “When you think of how other people are treated when they wanted to come in and change the course of what was happening in this building,” McCarthy remarked.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a Democrat from New York, stated that he had not yet seen the video of Bowman pulling the fire alarm and declined to comment further until he had reviewed the footage. Paul Starks, a spokesperson for the United States Capitol Police, confirmed that a fire alarm was activated at 12:05 p.m. on the second floor of the Cannon House Office Building. The US Capitol Police initiated an evacuation and conducted a thorough search of the building. “The building was reopened after it was determined that there was not a threat,” Starks stated. An investigation is ongoing to determine the cause of the alarm.

Bowman met with the Sergeant at Arms and the Capitol Police following the vote to provide an explanation for what happened.