Progressives worked over the summer to get nearly three dozen House Democrats to sign off on a letter that would call into question President Biden’s handling of Ukraine and urge him to engage diplomatically with Russia, according to two sources directly familiar with the negotiations. 

At the time, the midterms were on the back burner, according to both sources, who said the group of lawmakers didn’t have Nov. 8 on their minds at all when they crafted their request.

“They waited to get about 30 and released,” one source texted The Hill on Tuesday morning, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive internal negotiations. “Didn’t consider election timing.”

A House aide said the letter was “circulated for signatures” in June. “We aren’t sure why it was released now.”

That’s the question Democrats are now facing, with many wondering about the potential fallout from the move they consider puzzling, worrisome, and in some cases, downright infuriating right before the midterms.

On Monday, many of the House’s top liberals signed on to an official memo written by Congressional Progressive Caucus Chairwoman Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) asking Biden to push harder for negotiations with Russia over the war that it started eight months ago.