Hakeem Jeffries Wikipedia

Table Of Content

• Leader Jeffries Says "Reasonable Number of Democrats" Don't Want to See Speaker Fall Over Ukraine
• Top House Democrat calls for vote on legislation to counter antisemitism
• Complete List of Majority and Minority Leaders
• ABOUT THE SENATE
• House Republicans fear Rep. Hakeem Jeffries could be next House speaker if Johnson is ousted
• Leadership

Democrats will cede control of the House in January, after midterm elections in which Republicans performed less well than expected but still took the lower chamber. Scalise, 57, is a Louisiana native who was elected to the No 2 spot by voice vote, a sign of his broad support in the House Republican conference. Should McCarthy fall short in his quest to become speaker, Scalise has been mentioned as a potential alternative. Jeffries received thunderous applause from fellow Democrats during a poetic portion of his speech. Through the use of clever alliteration and every letter of the alphabet, the House minority leader appeared to highlight the contrast he saw between his party and Republicans.

Leader Jeffries Says "Reasonable Number of Democrats" Don't Want to See Speaker Fall Over Ukraine

Boehner worked hard to fashion budget deals with both a Democratic President Barack Obama and a Democratic Senate. But his efforts alienated some in his own ranks who in 2015 formed an insurgent group known as the House Freedom Caucus. Increasingly exasperated with his untenable predicament, Boehner simply resigned in October of that year. Even a glance at the history of Republican speakers since World War II would tell him that. Just such a "motion to vacate the chair" was filed against Johnson in March by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga. But Greene has yet to make the motion "privileged," which under the rules would necessitate a vote within two days.

Top House Democrat calls for vote on legislation to counter antisemitism

He also got strong support in the Senate, where even an outright majority of Republicans voted for the aid on Tuesday. Two colleagues had spoken up to say they would join Greene in such a vote, giving her enough to defeat the speaker if all the chamber's Democrats voted to do the same. That's what the Democrats did when a motion to vacate the chair ousted the last Republican speaker, Kevin McCarthy, last fall. This time around, the Georgia Republican has the support of at least two other House Republicans, Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Paul Gosar, R-Ariz. Gaetz told theGrio he is worried some of his “Republican colleagues would vote for Jeffries” to be Johnson’s successor in the event far-right Republican lawmakers make good on their threat to vacate him from the speakership.

Complete List of Majority and Minority Leaders

Uncertainty hangs over the speakership election, as Kevin McCarthy attempts to quell a conservative revolt that could derail his long-held hopes of claiming the speaker’s gavel. Beginning in 2000, Jeffries ran for office twice, unsuccessfully, before winning a seat in the New York State Assembly in 2006. Supporters and the media called him “The Barack of Brooklyn;” he was young, charismatic, and born on the same day as another Black politician, future President Barack Obama. The Minority Whip is a member of the minority party who assists the minority leader in coordinating the party caucus in its responses to legislation and other matters.

Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina, the current whip, won a vote to become assistant Democratic leader in an election on Thursday. Rep. David Cicilline of Rhode Island briefly challenged Clyburn for the post, citing a need for LGBTQ representation in leadership. Washington — House Democrats elected Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York as their next party leader in a unanimous vote on Wednesday, ushering in a generational shift as Democrats prepare to relinquish control of the lower chamber in January. Elected by acclamation, Clark will become the highest-ranking woman in House Democratic politics.

ABOUT THE SENATE

In 1997, in his second Congress as speaker, he barely survived a largely covert challenge from within his own leadership team. And just shy of his fourth anniversary in the job, he was voted out by the full House Republican conference in December 1998. A special election in 2008 brought Scalise to Washington, where he rose quickly through the Republican ranks. In 2012, he was elected chairman of the influential Republican study group, beating a candidate who had been handpicked by the group’s founders.

State legislators who serve as majority leaders are subject to any applicable term limits in their state. Since the minority leader represents the constituency of his or her district, they can vote on all questions before the chamber. If Johnson is vacated from his post, he will be the second speaker to be removed from the speakership this congressional session.

But House rules require that the speaker receive a majority of the votes cast, something neither Mr. Jeffries nor Mr. Jordan got in the first round of voting, because 20 Republicans voted for other candidates. Jeffries will square off against Republican House Leader Kevin McCarthy, a representative from California who has positioned himself as a steadfast ally of former President Donald Trump. McCarthy will become House Speaker when the new Republican-majority House convenes in January. Jeffries is set to lead a Democratic party that will lose its majority in the House of Representatives for the first time since 2018. In a speech following the vote on Wednesday, Jeffries said the party would reach across the aisle to work with Republicans.

Representative Katherine Clark of Massachusetts was elected as whip, the lead vote counter for House Democrats, and Representative Pete Aguilar of California as the chairman of the party caucus, in charge of messaging. House minority leaders also hold joint news conferences and consult with their counterparts in the Senate—and with the president if their party controls the White House. The overall objectives are to develop a coordinated communications strategy, to share ideas and information, and to present a united front on issues. Minority leaders also make floor speeches and close debate on major issues before the House; they deliver addresses in diverse forums across the country, and they write books or articles that highlight minority party goals and achievements. The floor leaders and whips of each party are elected by their respective parties in a closed-door caucus by secret ballot.[3] The Speaker-presumptive is assumed to be the incoming Speaker, although not formally selected to be nominated for Speaker by the majority party's caucus.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on the State of Congress - C-SPAN

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on the State of Congress.

Posted: Fri, 13 Oct 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Those on the left often wanted bolder policy proposals and more generous federal spending, while centrists argued for positions they maintained were more in step with voters in purple districts they represented and helped the party regain the majority in 2018. As House minority leader, Jeffries will become the first Black person to lead a major political party in Congress. He is among a new slate of leaders elected Wednesday to lead House Democrats in the next session of Congress, including Rep. Katherine Clark, D-Mass., as Jeffries' No. 2, and Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., as the third-ranking leader. He attended law school at New York University, graduating with honors and becoming a successful corporate lawyer before running for elected office. Both his state assembly district and congressional district are anchored in Brooklyn. The seamless elevation of a new generation of leaders came in stark contrast to the fractured House Republican conference, which has yet to unite around Kevin McCarthy after the weaker-than-expected midterms win.

House Session, Part 1 October 25, 2023 - C-SPAN

House Session, Part 1 October 25, 2023.

Posted: Wed, 25 Oct 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Gingrich had been a backbench rabble-rouser since coming to the House in 1978 and built up a cadre of supporters until he won the party's No. 2 power position as minority whip in 1989. He soon eclipsed the party's leader, Robert Michel, who was nearing retirement. But this time around several Democrats have indicated they would cross the aisle to support Johnson and frustrate Greene & Co. if it came to a vote.

He announced that he would caucus with the Democrats, giving the party a one-seat advantage and changing control of the Senate back to the Democrats. The Republicans narrowly regained control of the House in the 2022 midterm elections. Pelosi subsequently announced that she would step down from the House Democratic leadership and that she would not pursue the role of minority leader in the new Congress. A noted strategist and coalition builder, he ultimately ran unopposed, and on November 30, 2022, the House Democrats selected him to replace Pelosi as the party’s leader in the upcoming Congress. In addition, the minority leader has a number of other institutional functions. Informally, the minority leader maintains ties with majority party leaders to learn about the schedule and other House matters and forges agreements or understandings with them insofar as feasible.

The minority party offers opposition, but it is of marginal significance, typically because the minority is so small. As reported, on April 25, President Volodymyr Zelensky held phone conversations with House Speaker Mike Johnson, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. His predecessor, Frederick Gillett of Massachusetts, also had the top job for less than five years. But when he left after the 1924 session, his party was still firmly in control and had just elected President Calvin Coolidge to a full term. The next two Republican speakers would be John Boehner, elevated to the job by the GOP recapture of the House in the "Tea Party" election of 2010.

Andy Eichar, communications director for Jeffries’s office, told Al Jazeera over email that Jeffries has worked across the aisle to champion criminal justice reform and that he would protect healthcare from “right-wing attacks”. In a letter asking his colleagues to support his bid for House Leader, Jeffries emphasised his commitment to issues like racial justice, gun violence and reproductive rights. Jeffries also offered some insight on his relationship with GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy, the Republican nominee for the speakership. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called Jeffries' election a "turning point in the history of the United States Congress."

On Saturday morning, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries officially made history as the first African American to lead a major party in Congress. ” lawmakers chanted as they nominated Mr. Aguilar, using a nickname his grandmother gave him, according to two people in the room. A new trio, including Representatives Katherine Clark of Massachusetts as No. 2 and Pete Aguilar of California as No. 3, will take the reins in January, replacing Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her team. Jeffries also showcased his Brooklyn roots during the trial when responding to Trump's lawyer who asked the House impeachment managers why they were even there pushing their case.